Cuomo’s Edict Not to Blame for NY Nursing Home Deaths, State Report Says

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo speaks at a press conference in New York City on July 6, 2020. Cuomo defended the state's policy that mandated nursing homes accept residents who tested positive for COVID-19. David Dee Delgado/Getty Images

A widely maligned policy that forced nursing home operators in New York state to accept residents who had tested positive for COVID-19 wasn’t to blame for thousands of deaths from the new disease, a state report claims.

The New York State Department of Health report blamed staff members who tested positive for COVID-19, along with visitors, for infecting the residents at the facilities.