- New York State Assembly is holding a conference this morning to consider rescinding Governor Andrew Cuomo's emergency powers to manage the coronavirus pandemic
- In a separate statement, Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins slammed the governor and said another hearing is scheduled this month for next steps to take against his office
- It comes after top aide to Cuomo admitted the administration had hidden nursing home COVID-related death numbers in a Thursday call obtained by New York Post
- State Democrats had asked for the exact figures for nursing home deaths from COVID since March 1 but Melissa DeRosa, secretary to Cuomo, said that at the same time the Trump administration was investigating
- 'And basically, we froze' and kept the information secret for five more months, she admitted to the lawmakers
- Calls are growing for Cuomo to be prosecuted over the cover-up, from both Democrats and Republicans
- Two weeks ago, a stunning report from New York Attorney General Letitia James found the overall number of COVID deaths among long-term care residents is nearly 15,000 - up from the 8,500 previously disclosed
- It emerged on Thursday that more than 9,000 recovering COVID-19 patients were sent back into nursing homes - 40 per cent more than Cuomo previously said
14 Democrats in NY Senate want repeal of Cuomo’s emergency powers
[FoxNews] 'It is clear that the expanded emergency powers granted to the Governor are no longer appropriate,' Democrats said.
Fourteen New York Democrats are seeking to strip Gov. Andrew
SonnyCuomo
of emergency powers granted to him throughout the COVID-19 pandemic after a top aide revealed his administration withheld data about nursing home deaths in New York from Justice Department Sherlocks. "Without exception, the New York State Constitution calls for the Legislature to govern as a co-equal branch of government. While COVID-19 has tested the limits of our people and state-- and, early during the pandemic, required the government to restructure decision making to render rapid, necessary public health judgements-- it is clear that the expanded emergency powers granted to the Governor are no longer appropriate," a joint statement by the state Senators said.
"While the executive's authority to issue directives is due to expire on April 30, we urge the Senate to advance and adopt a repeal as expeditiously as possible."
Supporters of the measure included Sens. Alessandra Biaggi, Jabari Brisport, Samra Brouk, Jeremy Cooney, Andrew Gounardes, Robert Jackson, John Liu, John Mannion, Rachel May, Elijah Reichlin-Melnick, Gustavo Rivera, Julia Salazar, James Sanders and James Skoufis.
In March 2020, New York passed legislation to expand Cuomo's executive powers to issue directives to quell the spread of COVID-19, which ravaged the state in the early months of the pandemic.
But politicians on both sides of the aisle are losing faith in Cuomo's ability to be transparent and trustworthy,
Ya THINK??
after Melissa DeRosa, secretary to the governor, revealed on a call with Democratic politicians Thursday that Cuomo's administration feared the data about COVID-19 deaths could "be used against us" by the DOJ in the midst of its federal probe initiated against four states regarding nursing home deaths, including New York.
The revelation came on Wednesday, when the state revealed the number of deaths was actually 15,049 residents in elder care facilities (nursing homes and assisted living/adult care facilities), according to a letter from the State Health Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker sent to Senate Democrats.
T the New York Department of Health reported that as of Jan. 27, 2021, there were 5,957 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.
The staggering numbers confirmed the findings of a probe by the New York Attorney General Letitia James, which revealed that Cuomo's Department of Health underreported COVID-19 deaths in nursing homes by as much as 50%.
Some sort of confinement along with the appropriate treatments and rest.