Erie County Comptroller Stefan I. Mychajliw Jr. is calling on the federal government to investigate former Governor Andrew Cuomo and New York State over policies that directed COVID-19 positive patients back into nursing homes during the pandemic.
In a letter sent to U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar, Mychajliw urged federal officials to examine the state’s nursing home policies and questioned whether those decisions contributed to high COVID-19 death rates among seniors, particularly in Erie County. He also raised concerns about the accuracy of data released by New York State regarding nursing home fatalities.
“It is despicable and unconscionable to force seniors sick with COVID-19 back into nursing homes,” Mychajliw said. “This decision exposed the most vulnerable members of our community to a deadly disease. Governor Cuomo cannot investigate himself. We need an immediate federal investigation.”
According to data from the New York State Department of Health, as of May 28, 2020, Erie County had recorded 524 COVID-19 related deaths. More than 44 percent of those deaths occurred in nursing homes. Mychajliw questioned why the proportion of nursing home fatalities in Erie County was so high compared to other regions.
“Why are such a large share of COVID-19 deaths occurring in nursing homes in Erie County?” he said. “These seniors needed protection, and they did not receive it. The people of New York deserve answers and accountability.”
Mychajliw also called on federal officials to scrutinize the state’s reporting of nursing home death data, suggesting that inaccuracies could exist.
“If New York State failed to protect seniors in nursing homes, why should we trust the data being released?” he said. “There are serious questions about transparency and oversight.”
Under state policy at the time, nursing home residents who tested positive for COVID-19 were permitted to return to their facilities once deemed medically stable. That policy has since faced widespread criticism and has raised questions about whether it contributed to increased transmission and fatalities among elderly residents.
Mychajliw pointed to federal investigations in other states as justification for similar action in New York. He noted that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is investigating a Pennsylvania nursing home with a reported death rate of 12.9 deaths per 100 beds. In Erie County, he said, four nursing homes have death rates exceeding 10 deaths per 100 beds, with one facility reporting nearly 39 deaths per 100 beds.
“If those numbers are concerning enough to trigger a federal investigation elsewhere, then the figures in Erie County warrant even greater scrutiny,” Mychajliw said.
The comptroller said his request seeks to determine whether state policies contributed to preventable deaths and to identify changes needed to avoid similar outcomes in the future.
“We owe this to the families who lost loved ones in Erie County nursing homes,” Mychajliw said. “They deserve answers, and they deserve accountability.”
