Andrew Cuomo faces subpoena over Covid deaths in nursing homes

Former Governor Andrew M. Cuomo of New York has been subpoenaed to appear before a House subcommittee to answer for his administration’s handling of nursing homes during the coronavirus pandemic, reigniting a flashpoint that could undermine his chances of winning a political comeback could be further damaged.

The Republican-led Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic accused Mr. Cuomo of “recklessly” exposing nursing home residents to the virus “with deadly consequences.”

Subcommittee chairman Rep. Brad Wenstrup of Ohio said in a letter sent to Mr. Cuomo on Tuesday that there was “troubling evidence indicating that the Cuomo administration was at best downplaying the effects of its nursing home policies” and at worst concealing them.

The subpoena is the latest in a multi-year saga surrounding the former governor’s decision to require nursing homes to accept residents who tested positive for Covid-19 in the spring of 2020. The decision, which predicted a virus outbreak in those facilities that would lead to thousands of deaths, has received widespread attention from state and federal investigators.

In January 2021, New York State Attorney General Letitia James, a Democrat, concluded that the state had “seriously” underestimated the number of nursing home deaths — allegations that were validated when the state later increased its figures by some 40 percent adjusted upwards. But while her office’s report found that returning residents to their facilities “may have placed residents at increased risk,” it stopped short of blaming the governor’s policies for nursing home outbreaks, acknowledging that it policy at the time was consistent with federal guidelines.

The former governor, also a Democrat, has repeatedly denied that the policy led to additional deaths.

A spokesman for Mr. Cuomo called the subpoena “an obvious press charade” and noted that the claims in question had been investigated by both the Justice Department and the Manhattan district attorney’s office, both of which declined to institute criminal proceedings.

“This is an election stunt; they are a bunch of clowns,” said the spokesman, Richard Azzopardi.

The case was also investigated by the State Assembly’s Judiciary Committee, which launched a broad investigation into Mr. Cuomo’s handling of Covid and nursing homes, as well as the sexual harassment allegations that would later force his resignation.

The Assembly investigation did not directly evaluate whether Mr. Cuomo’s order led to the deadly nursing home outbreaks. But it did find that the government had selectively reported statistics from those facilities to avoid criticism.

At issue was New York State’s method of categorizing nursing home deaths. The state did not include nursing home residents who died of Covid in hospitals or other settings in its overview, effectively lowering reported death rates for nursing home residents.

In its letter to Mr. Cuomo, the House subcommittee accused the former governor of delaying its investigation, detailing months of discussions about scheduling an interview.

Mr. Cuomo’s representatives insisted on cooperating, offering both written answers and a range of dates in August for an interview.

The subpoena requires Mr. Cuomo to appear on May 24.

“Former Governor Cuomo owes answers to the 15,000 families who lost loved ones in New York nursing homes during the Covid-19 pandemic,” Mr. Wenstrup said in a statement.

The subcommittee also sought information on how the administration handles nursing homes from the former secretary to the governorMelissa DeRosa, a senior assistant who, according to documents and interviews, was involved in rewriting a Department of Health report to cover up nursing home deaths.

Two New York House Republicans applauded the subpoena as a long-overdue measure of accountability.

“His testimony is critical to helping us prevent a tragedy like this from ever happening again,” Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, who sits on the subcommittee, said in a statement, which was echoed by Rep. Elise Stefanik, the Fourth Republican of the House of Representatives.

Democrats did not immediately jump to the defense of Cuomo, a former party colleague who was thought to have an outside shot at the presidency. A representative for House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries did not respond to a request for comment, nor did a spokesperson for Cuomo’s successor, Gov. Kathy Hochul.

Mr Cuomo has become increasingly at odds with his party following his resignation in August 2021 amid the sexual harassment allegations. He has denied wrongdoing.