Cuomo says ‘everybody did the best they could’ on nursing home deaths, White House avoids probe question

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Concha: NY nursing home story coverage time would be ‘triple’ if the governor was Republican

Fox News contributor Joe Concha, Republican New York State Assemblyman Mike Lawler, and former Health and Human Services Assistant Secretary and Admiral Brett Giroir discuss the apparent underreported nursing home deaths in New York.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki on Friday sidestepped questions over whether President Biden would support a federal investigation into nursing home COVID-19 deaths in New York, after the state’s attorney general said this week that they were undercounted by as much as 50%.

And New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, taking questions from reporters Friday a day after the release of the report on nursing home deaths, defended himself and said, "Everybody did the best they could."

Psaki was asked Friday whether the White House would support a federal probe, but said all questions about investigations should be asked of the Justice Department.

NY UNDERCOUNTED NURSING HOME CORONAVIRUS DEATHS BY AS MUCH AS 50%, STATE AG SAYS

"Any investigation would be led by the Justice Department," Psaki said, without answering the question.

Cuomo last year directed nursing homes in the state to accept patients who had or were suspected of having COVID-19. The decision created an onslaught of COVID-19 cases that infected thousands of elderly patients and resulted in hundreds of deaths among the state's most vulnerable population. 

In his press conference, Cuomo said Friday the state followed federal guidance. "If you think there was a mistake, then go talk to the federal government," he said. "It’s not about pointing fingers or blame, this became a political football." 

In a swipe at the Trump administration, Psaki, during her press conference, added: "We’re in a new age where they’re independent and will determine what steps they take moving forward."

The comment comes after New York Attorney General Letitia James said the state Department of Health underreported coronavirus deaths in nursing homes by as much as 50%, according to a new report, which revealed that as of Jan. 27, 2021, there were 5,597 confirmed deaths due to COVID-19 in nursing homes and an additional 2,783 presumed deaths. In assisted care facilities, there were 160 deaths and 52 presumed deaths.

James' report said that government guidance requiring the admission of COVID-19 patients into nursing homes may have put residents at increased risk of harm in some facilities and may have obscured the data available to assess that risk.

Cuomo has defended the nursing home policy as in-line with guidance from the Trump administration at the time. The governor was silent Thursday following the new AG report and did not respond to Fox News' immediate request for comment. 

James' report said that government guidance requiring the admission of COVID-19 patients into nursing homes may have put residents at increased risk of harm in some facilities and may have obscured the data available to assess that risk.

The Office of the Attorney General (OAG) asked 62 nursing homes to provide data about deaths in their facilities. 

The report, which revealed the findings of an investigation into allegations of patient neglect and other "concerning conduct" that jeopardized the health and safety of both patients and employees, said that some facilities failed to comply with health protocols to stop the spread of the virus. 

NEW YORK NURSING HOME DEATHS TOPPED 12K, CUOMO HEALTH CHIEF REVEALS

Nursing homes that had low U.S. Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services Staffing ratings were found to have higher COVID-19 fatality rates. 

In addition, lack of sufficient personal protective equipment for staff, as well as low availability of testing, could have also increased the patients' risk of contracting the virus, the report said. 

About 70% of the nearly 35,000 COVID deaths in New York were people aged 70 and older, according to state data as of Jan. 28.

Investigations into more than 20 nursing homes whose reported conduct during the first wave of the pandemic presented particular concern are still ongoing, James added. 

"As the pandemic and our investigations continue, it is imperative that we understand why the residents of nursing homes in New York unnecessarily suffered at such an alarming rate," James said in a statement. "While we cannot bring back the individuals we lost to this crisis, this report seeks to offer transparency that the public deserves and to spur increased action to protect our most vulnerable residents."

Meanwhile, President Biden formally nominated Judge Merrick Garland as attorney general earlier this month.

Garland rose to greater national prominence when then-President Obama nominated him for the U.S. Supreme Court following the death of Justice Antonin Scalia in 2016. He never received a hearing, as Republicans chose to wait until after that year’s election, allowing President Trump to appoint Justice Neil Gorsuch instead.

Republicans faced intense criticism from Democrats in 2020, when weeks before the presidential election they filled a Supreme Court vacancy by confirming Justice Amy Coney Barrett, following the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Garland has served on the D.C. Circuit since 1997, when he was appointed by President Bill Clinton. He was the court's chief judge from 2013 to 2020. He does have Justice Department experience, having been a special assistant attorney general from 1979 to 1981, a deputy assistant attorney general for the DOJ's criminal division from 1993 to 1994, and a principal associate deputy attorney general from 1994 to 1997.

If he is confirmed as the next attorney general, Garland would be giving up a lifetime appointment to the circuit court.

The Senate Judiciary Committee has yet to schedule Garland’s confirmation hearing.

Fox News’ Kristin Fisher, Vandana Rambaran and The Associated Press contributed to this report.