Gov. Cuomo bans indoor dining in New York City as coronavirus cases surge
New York Post columnist Karol Markowicz provides insight on ‘Fox and Friends Weekend.’
More than nine months into the coronavirus pandemic, New York state’s nursing homes have made little headway in ensuring its residents' safety, according to the findings of a report published Thursday.
The Empire Center for Public Policy found that between Oct. 25 and Nov. 29, nursing home residents, despite being less than 0.5% of the population, accounted for 25% of coronavirus deaths statewide.
"It seems like they’re more vulnerable than ever," Bill Hammond, a senior fellow for health policy at the Empire Center, told The New York Post.
Family members wave goodbye to nursing home resident Barbara Farrior, 85, at the end of their visit at the Hebrew Home at Riverdale on Thanksgiving, Thursday, Nov. 26, 2020, in New York. (AP)
Federal data reviewed by Hammond showed that there were nearly 270 coronavirus deaths at nursing home facilities during the previously mentioned timespan.
Hammond, who previously believed nursing homes "were better protected than ever," told The Post that "it’s extremely difficult to protect nursing home residents from this virus because they’re so acutely vulnerable."
"Although they themselves are cut off from the rest of the world, they have frequent intimate contact with staff… and those people are out in the world to some extent and are inevitably exposed to the virus," he said.
Though the number of nursing home deaths between October and November was not as large as they were earlier in the pandemic, Hammond said the latest figures were still large enough to warrant concern.
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Despite garnering praise for his handling of the pandemic, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has also been criticized for a controversial March mandate requiring nursing homes to take in patients so long as they were medically stable. The nursing homes were prohibited from testing incoming residents for the virus before they arrived.
More than 6,300 COVID-positive patients were admitted to nursing homes between March 25 and May, according to a report from the state health department. The high number of admitted patients had been widely blamed for the state’s official care home death toll of more than 6,600 – but an analysis from the state health department later determined that there was no causal link.
Lawmakers and the Empire Center have disputed the health department’s findings have submitted Freedom of Information Law requests for the state to release official figures, according to The Post.
An August analysis by The Associated Press found that New York’s coronavirus death toll in nursing homes – which was already among the highest in the nation – could actually be a significant undercount.
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Unlike every other state with major outbreaks, New York only counts residents who died on nursing home property and not those who were transported to hospitals and died there. That statistic could add thousands to the state’s official care home death toll of just over 6,600.
Gov. Cuomo’s office did not immediately respond to Fox News’ request for comment.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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