Gov. Kathy Hochul took office on Tuesday — and her first order of business was to reveal what Andrew Cuomo had been covering up.
Hochul gave her first update on the coronavirus crisis in New York State. She reported 55,400 coronavirus deaths statewide, according to death certificate data given to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Only one day before, Cuomo had reported 43,400 deaths. That’s a difference of 12,000.
The Associated Press reached out to Cuomo’s lawyer Rita Glavin. The AP has not heard back, as of Wednesday.
Hochul, a Democrat, is using Cuomo’s scandals as an opportunity to paint herself as transparent. However, she is risking very little by publishing the higher death toll. The higher number was already publicly known. New York’s attorney general reported on an alleged cover-up in January, and the report made national headlines after a New York Post article from February.
“The public deserves a clear, honest picture of what’s happening. And that’s whether it’s good or bad, they need to know the truth. And that’s how we restore confidence,” Gov. Kathy Hochul told NPR on Wednesday.
“There’s a lot of things that weren’t happening, and I’m going to make them happen,” she said Wednesday on MSNBC. “Transparency will be the hallmark of my administration.”
Cuomo’s number included only deaths that were laboratory-confirmed as results of coronavirus and were reported in hospitals, nursing homes, and other adult care centers.
In other words, Cuomo’s tally excluded anyone who died at home, in hospice, in a prison or at a group home for the disabled. Some people remained uncounted because they were transferred to these locations from nursing homes.
Federal prosecutors are currently investigating the Cuomo administration for the alleged cover-up.
“There are presumed and confirmed deaths. People should know both,” Hochul said. She officially updated the state’s official corona-tracking website on Wednesday. In a gesture of transparency, she acknowledged what everyone already knew.
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The Horn editorial team