Following a legislative hearing conducted on Monday by Commissioner of Health Howard A. Zucker, who testified on behalf of the Cuomo administration, Assemblyman Chris Tague (R,C,I,Ref-Schoharie) is continuing to call for an independent investigation into the Department of Health’s handling of nursing home patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. The hearing only lasted about three hours, and not all legislators were given a chance to question the commissioner. Tague believes only a thorough and independent investigation will fully bring to light what caused thousands of people to die in nursing homes throughout the state.

“A three-hour hearing that didn’t even give all legislators a chance to ask questions is not going to bring any closure to the countless families who lost loved ones in nursing homes during this pandemic,” said Tague. “The governor and his allies have danced around this issue long enough and the time for charades such as this is over. We need a completely independent investigation into this loss of life, free from partisan influence. Despite what the governor says, this isn’t about politics or ‘pointing fingers,’ this is about giving answers to people that lost their relatives and making sure the mistakes that led to this tragedy are never repeated.”