Cuomo Administration Undercounted COVID-19 Deaths in Nursing Homes by as Much as 50 Percent: Report

According to a report released by New York Attorney General ⚖️Letitia James, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo‘s (D) administration severely undercounted the number of COVID-19 related deaths in nursing homes by as much as 50%.

“Preliminary data obtained by OAG suggests that many nursing home residents died from COVID-19 in hospitals after being transferred from their nursing homes, which is not reflected in published total nursing home death data,” a summary of the report reads.

The report surveyed 62 nursing homes, 10% of the state’s total number of facilities, to ask them about on-site and in-hospital deaths from COVID-19.

There were discrepancies found between the number of deaths reported to the office of the attorney general and those published by the state health department.

“In one example, a facility reported five confirmed and six presumed COVID-19 deaths at the facility as of August 3 to DOH. However, the facility reported to OAG a total of 27 COVID-19 deaths at the facility and 13 hospital deaths — a discrepancy of 29 deaths,” the summary reads.

The attorney general’s office also received complaints about nursing homes failing to “implement proper infection controls” to prevent the spread of the virus.

Several nursing homes were accused of failing to isolate residents who tested positive for COVID-19 and properly screen or test employees for the virus.