LIVE I Republicans Grill Andrew Cuomo I House Panel Blasts Ex-NY Guv Over Covid Deaths I US News

more than two months ago it took issuing of subpoena to get you to then agreed to testify previously so I appreciate you coming in voluntarily today before we get into the substance uh we are here to examine I want to tell you that this subcommittee has been threatened twice this Congress once by the Chinese Communist Party through its Embassy for examining the origins of covid-19 and a second time by you through your Council for examining the handling of covid-19 in nursing homes I can tell you we have not and we will not bow to these threats I certainly hope you do not approve of these tactics or perhaps you aren't aware of them Governor Cuomo which seems to be a consistent pattern nonetheless select subcommittee is holding this hearing today to examine your administration's handling of the co 19 pandemic in New York specifically we want to focus on the issuance of a directive that resulted in the admittance and readmit according to the ap of more than 9,000 potentially covid positive individuals to nursing homes the select subcommittee has been authorized to investigate the covid-19 pandemic and to explore Lessons Learned positive or negative to better prepare for future pandemics since the beginning of this Congress we've been committed to conducting a thorough investigation free from influence and unafraid to follow the facts wherever they may lead we've acted in a transparent fashion cognizant that Americans deserve to see our work and review review all available information so they can draw their own conclusions we're examining actions taken by Congress including measures I voted for but might want to do differently or better the next time so that that when the next shocking pandemic occurs we have looked back found what worked and what didn't and establish a workable system so that we may endure this is an after action review in hopes of being able to predict prepare protect and perhaps even prevent the next pandemic in search for best pandemic practices today's hearing is focused on New York and the March 25 2020 directive from the New York State Department of Health issued under Governor Andrew Cuomo's leadership in this investigation we have reviewed more than half a million documents and we've conducted 10 transcribed interviews with members of your Administration including you our findings are based on the evidence and testimonies that we have received this is a comprehensive and painstaking Endeavor to find out what happened to New York nursing homes with more than 2,000 pages of testimony publicly released to support our conclusions simply put America cannot move forward without first looking back and that includes examining your directive governor Mr croma I think you'll agree that New York state became Ground Zero for much of the pandemic in the United States in the earliest stage of the pandemic covid-19 was a novel virus and there was little information and a lot of unknowns but it quickly became clear that covid-19 was particularly dangerous for the elderly we all saw the deadly consequences of covid-19 in nursing homes in Washington state the early ier epicenter of the pandemic there was a thousandfold higher risk of poor outcomes specifically hospitalization and death for older people relative to younger populations therefore it was critically important that the public health response prioritize protecting high-risk populations this is an important lesson learned this was under understood by the US centers for Medicaid and Medicare services and the US Centers for Disease Control and prevention the CDC on March 13 2020 CMS issued guidance I want to stress the word guidance that specifically directed nursing homes to not accept covid-19 positive patients if they were unable to do so safely and to only accept individuals if the nursing home could follow CDC transmission based guidance again this guidance was a non-binding federally issued guidance that's reflected by its language the CMS guidance used terms such as can and should consistent with the tone of guidance a nursing home can accept a resident this is a quote a nursing home home can accept a resident diagnosed with covid-19 and still under transmission-based precautions for covid-19 as long as the facility can follow CDC guidance for transmission-based precautions nursing homes should admit any individual should admit any individual that they would normally admit to their facility including individuals from hospitals where a case of covid-19 was or is present this was not the case with the directive issued by your Administration on March 25 2020 why I know like to play semantics and refer to it as an advisory it's clear that it's anything but Miriam Webster defines an advisory as containing or giving advice your advisory refers to itself in the language as a directive in the very first paragraph with your name at the top governor qumo and it says this directive is being issued to clarify expectations for nursing homes receiving residents returning from hospitalization and for nursing homes accepting new admissions Miriam Webster defines a directive as an authoritative order or instrument issued by a high level body or official that's what that was on March 25 2020 in your case that carries the weight of all your directive uses words like shall must and prohibit it directs that all nursing homes must comply with the expediated receipt of residents returning from hospitals to nursing homes it directs no resident shall be denied readmission or admission to the nursing home solely based on a confirmed or suspected diagnosis of covid-19 an authoritative directive from the state of New York with the authority of law no resident shall be denied readmission or admission to the nursing home solely based on a confirmed or suspected diagnosis of covid-19 it directs that nursing homes are prohibited prohibited from requiring a hospitalized resident who is determined medically stable to be tested for covid-19 prior to admission or readmission see here's the problem medically stable can still mean highly contagious the language in this directive is not advisory and it's not non-binding the CMS guidance was and still is advisory and non-binding directive with the authority of law supersedes guidance prohibited means not allowed and prohibiting testing for covid-19 is nowhere in the CDC guidance because of this language the March 25 directive was dubbed a must admit order by the public and press and rightfully so those words are not in in there but that's how it became known in the common vernacular in the public and press but your directive was not consistent with Federal guidance nor consistent with medical Doctrine you do not put highly contagious patients in with vulnerable patients subject to infection and in this case death your former commissioner of the Department of Health told us that you received the phone call from the greater New York Hospital Association asking you to do something about nursing home residents that the hospitals wanted to be able to discharge he testified that you were told that these patients needed to go home and while you testified that you were not aware of the directive until April 20 2020 you decided to keep it after learning about it it remained in effect for almost 3 weeks after you knew about it Governor you own this it's your name on the letter head this is your directive whether you knew about it or not you're the leader the buck stops with you or at least it should it's important to look at your administration's record two weeks after you learned about the order your office changed the methodology of how nursing home fatalities were categorized you removed out of facility desk that occurred at the hospital altering the full account coun ing of nursing home deaths during your transcribed interview when describing why you chose not to disclose the number of nursing home residents who died at hospitals you remarked who cares I'll tell you who cares about this doctors and nurses trying to save lives care about this people dying in their families they care about this if someone contracted covid-19 in the nursing home and died at the hospital it matters it it is scientifically significant to know where how and why someone contracted covid-19 and died if we're going to prevent this in the future that is important data in July of 2020 we released a report under the offices of the New York State Department of Health that blame nursing home employees rather than your directive for the deaths that occurred in nursing homes your spokesperson Rich AAP partti described this report as peer-reviewed I'm not sure if Mr AAP party understands the peer review process an effective response to the pandemic required a willingness to adapt to evolving data to new information it will be required for the next pandemic as well it's important to review the data actual data to recognize the dangerous and disast ous consequences of your directive a directive that goes against medical protocols and is considered by many medical professionals to be malpractice you wrote in your book that it wasn't your quote place to filter or edit the truth end quote but it's clear that it seemed to be someone's place you said who cares but we do care about the truth because it's obvious that you don't like the out of facility nursing home deaths it's a truth that matters and that's why we're here today to ask why you made the decisions that you or your executive team made to try and account for your actions and responses without naming and blaming others as you have repeatedly done because we need to help America be prepared for the next pandemic and to protect American lives and because infectious diseases like respiratory viruses don't recognize borders we want to protect lives beyond our borders as well I look forward to a strong on-topic discussion today and I would now like to recognize ranking member Ruiz for the purpose of making an opening statement thank you Mr chairman let me Begin by taking a moment to acknowledge the seniors that our nation has lost to covid-19 as well as the grief of the families who lost parents and grandparents during the pandemic each and every life taken by the virus is a tragedy and I'm sorry for your loss with four years having passed since the height of the covid-19 pandemic many of us have become numb to the Grave uncertainty that we faced in 2020 that spring as the novel virus took hold across our nation hospitals overflowed with patients as hundreds and eventually thousands of Americans died each day Frontline healthc care workers were forced to wear garbage bags as gowns and Life as we knew it had come to a total halt things were in absolute chaos and in the midst of that chaos public officials at every level of government were left to make challenging decisions in real time with constantly evolving information and extremely limited resources now with the darkest days of the pandemic behind us thanks to the Biden Harris administration's historic work getting vaccines and arms safely reopening schools and businesses and jum starting our economy we have the opportunity to look back on those decisions and learn from them and in doing so we can acknowledge that that in future Public Health crisis we would make certain decisions differently one such case is policies that arguably required the readmission of covid-19 patients back into nursing homes without infection prevention and control in an early effort to relieve Hospital strain in hindsight knowing now what we do about how covid-19 spreads including through aerosolized droplets and by asymptomatic carriers these policies were a misstep and there are something we can learn from as we look to better prepare for future pandemics however we must be comprehensive in our examination of where things went right and where things went wrong in responding to covid-19 and we would be doing our nation seniors and nursing home residents a disservice by not taking a hard and honest look at the data that has emerged from that period and this data shows us that the driving force behind the infections and fatalities that occurred in our nation's nursing homes was broader Community spread which led to Dedicated staff inadvertently bringing the virus into these vulnerable settings and as we look back on policy missteps that put our nation seniors at risk I would be remiss if I did not mention that the issue of community spread the driving factor is one that was severely ly exacerbated by the severe shortages of PPE and tests that our nation experienced at the hand of former president Trump and his administration's early blunders these failures hampered our efforts to get a handle on the outbreak of covid-19 and left states to fend for themselves when it came to obtaining critically needed supplies to protect our most vulnerable as ranking member I've have ched championed objectivity and called for the select subcommittee to put people over politics and in that vein I want to make something abundantly clear any public official who sought to obscure transparency or mislead the American people during the covid-19 pandemic should answer to the American public regardless of political party and that is why the former Governor and members of his administration faced serious questions from both sides of the aisle about Al ations that they misrepresented nursing home fatality data to evade public scrutiny during the closed door transcribed interviews that led up to this hearing it is also why I have been so forceful in my condemnation of the former president and his Reckless efforts to downplay the threat of covid-19 in the early days of the pandemic the American people deserve honesty transparency and integrity from their public officials full stop at the the same time I continue to believe that the greatest thing we can do for the American people is contribute to forward-looking work of preventing and preparing for future pandemics that is why today I am leading select subcommittee Democrats in announcing new legislation to strengthen infection control and prevention efforts in our nation's nursing homes the safer nursing homes Act is forward-looking legislation that makes new robust investments in the centers for Medicare and Medicaid services survey and certification efforts which uncover incidents of poor or substandard care to be available for these crucial oversight activities our new legislation Builds on the Biden Harris administration's Legacy of protecting and advancing the health of our nation seniors earlier this year the administration finalized its long-term care Staffing rule which establishes new federal standards to ensure that our parents and grandparents and nursing homes receive the highest quality care and in 2022 President Biden and vice president Harris took on big Pharma and signed into law the historic inflation reduction act which kept the monthly cost of insulin at $35 for seniors a month and finally allowed Medicare to negotiate for lower prescription drug prices one thing is certain there is still more we can and must do to protect and Advance the health of our nation seniors as we look to strengthen our nation's preparedness for future pandemics and public health threats it is my hope that the select subcommittee can play a meaningful role in this work and in service of every senior who we lost too soon at the hands of the pandemic it is my hope that we can work together every member of the select subcommittee to make progress on this critically important Mission so that we can save future lives with that I yield back thank you Dr Ruiz before we proceed with a witness statement I want to announce a subpoena to the governor of New York for documents related to Mr Cuomo and his March 25th directive The subpoena is vitally important as this inquiry continues and because the current governor is improperly withholding documents from Mr Cuomo's time uh that are responsive to our requests we hope that Governor hok lives up to her promise of transparency and proceeds without further delay our witness today is Mr Andrew Cuomo Mr Cuomo is governor of the state of New York from 2011 to 2021 pursuant to the commit to committee on oversight and accountability rule 9g G the witness will please stand and raise his right hand do you Solly swear or affirm that the testimony that you are about to give is the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you guide thank you let the record show that The W witness answered in the affirmative the select subcomittee certainly appreciate you for being here today Governor Cuomo and we look forward to your testimony let we remind the witness that we have read as much as we could of your written statement uh and it will appear in full in the hearing record as requested please limit your oral statement to 6 minutes as we agreed upon as a reminder please press the button on the microphone in front of you so that it is on and the members can hear you when you begin to speak the light in front of you will turn green after 5 minutes the light will turn yellow when the red light comes on your six minutes has expired and we would ask that you please wrap up I now recognize Mr Cuomo to give an opening statement thank you first to the families of the victims here today and across the country I am sorry for your loss and I believe you are owed in an apology because this country should have done better there is no reason why we lost 1.2 million people more than any country on the globe when we have the most sophisticated medical system this committee must deliver real answers so it never happens again and I am here today to help in that mission as you know New York was hit first and worst by Co through no fault of its own I did daily briefings and millions listened in because they wanted no because they needed information and guidance and yes I often vehemently disagreed with President Trump because from day one he willfully deceived the American people denying CO's very real threat telling us that it was like the flu it would go away by Easter it was a democratic hoax used Clorox and his lies and denials delayed our response let the virus spread and this country never caught up Trump literally said I take no responsibility and he fabricated political attacks blaming Democratic Governors including saying that New York issued a health order on March 25th having covid positive people at their nursing homes from hospitals which recklessly and needlessly cause thousands of deaths and then Trump weaponized the Department of Justice starting investigations against New York and three other Democratic states Trump's shocking allegations all false were designed to shift blame from him to Democrats and they did they also created great pain confusion and fear for families and this subcommittee run by Republicans repeats the Trump lies and deceptions and is it inherently makes two powerful admissions first their report does not deny contrary to what New York Republicans said for 4 years it does not deny that it was actually the Trump Administration the CMS and CDC that first said in early March that covid positive people could go from hospitals to nursing homes even if they were still infectious that was your ruling the committee attempts to argue that the New York advisory did follow the CMS guidance and over road safety laws but that has already been investigated by the New York attorney general who said you're wrong and who confirmed the March 25th advisory was in total compliance with federal guidelines and that all New York's nursing home laws remained in effect period in addition the report provides no evidence to support Trump's main allegation repeated for three years that New York's guidance killed thousands in nursing homes in fact the report finds no causality whatsoever not one death all hype why because it never happened all credible studies now say that Co came into nursing homes through Community spread and infected staff not Hospital admissions or readmissions numbers don't lie 35 States had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York including Ohio most Republican states actually had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York in 2020 and that fact dams them and reveals their hypocrisy but these are all diversions to blame New York and other states for the culpability of the federal response which was malpractice there was no preparation no PPE no testing no masks no science no leadership as one Republican Governor said about Trump the general was missing an action leaving 50 states bidding against each other for scarce medical supplies it was The covid Hunger Games the federal government was nowhere to be found New Yorkers remember well those traumatic days when the only sound that echoed through the empty streets with the constant Sirens from ambulances when Mass Graves were being dug on Harts Islands when bodies were being stored in refrigerated trucks our hospital system nearly collapsed and Trump was threatening to send federal troops to blockade New York so no one could leave that was the Federal response and yes New Yorkers were scared but they were New York tough and they showed that when show that they responded to government leadership when they believed it was based on facts in that moment in New York there were no Democrats and Republicans they were just New Yorkers helping and relying on each other they were Guided by their better Angels they followed science took vaccines wore masks and acted responsibly one for another New Yorkers heroic actions brought us back from the brink and saved many many lives when Co started in 2020 we had the highest death rate in the country but at the end of 2021 remarkably New York had a lower death rate than 30 States but even with all New Yorkers did we lost far too many and I'm sorry for every life lost in closing I know this is a political iCal year and I have testified before many many congressional committees but this issue really matters there will be another pandemic and they will pull out your report for guidance I hope it has real answers God forbid 1.2 million people died in vain thank you thank you I now recognize myself for as much time as I may consume for questions with equal time being afforded to the ranking member of the committee uh you know the question is asked did the federal government require that that the state of New York mandate that its nursing homes admit or readmit residents the answer is no did the federal government mandate that your State issue a directive that prohibited a nursing home from testing an an admitted or readmitted resident for covid-19 the answer is no in fact I don't believe I'm aware of any other state besid jur that expressly prohibited a nursing home from testing returning or newly admitted residents only only in New York the other states that that have been alleged issued similar orders none were in place as long as New York so many states reverse course and I surmise because it doesn't take a doctor to realize that it was a dangerous misguided plan nevertheless Governor you've maintained and testified to us since the pandemic that your directive was based on and consistent with CMS and CDC guidelines you're a lawyer so you know the difference between permissive versus prescriptive language I assume in and the word shall and must it are they permissive or prescriptive Governor are the words shall and must permissive or prescriptive it depends on the context okay well those words are right in in the directive this was not advisory or guidance you have also claimed that the directive followed CMS and CDC guidance did you ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand you'd have to ask the uh Department of Health had those conversations so what you're saying is you did not ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand in today's hearing and for testifying in front of the select subcommittee more than two months ago it took issuing a subpoena to get you to then agree to testify previously so I appreciate you coming in voluntarily today before we get into the substance uh we are here to examine I want to tell you that this subcommittee has been threatened twice this Congress once by the Chinese Communist Party through its Embassy for examining the origins of covid-19 and a second time by you through your Council for examining the handling of covid-19 in nursing homes I can tell you we have not and we will not bow to these threats I certainly hope you do not approve of these tactics or perhaps you aren't aware of them Governor CUO which seems to be a consistent pattern nonetheless select subcommittee is holding this hearing today to examine your administ A's handling of the covid-19 pandemic in New York specifically we want to focus on the issuance of a directive that resulted in the admittance and readmit according to the ap of more than 9,000 potentially covid positive individuals to nursing homes the select subcommittee has been authorized to investigate the covid-19 pandemic and to explore Lessons Learned positive or negative to better prepare for future pandemics since the beginning of this Congress we've been committed to conducting a thorough investigation free from influence and unafraid to follow the facts wherever they may lead we've acted in a transparent fashion cognizant that Americans deserve to see our work and review review all available information so they can draw their own conclusions we're examining ing actions taken by Congress including measures I voted for but might want to do differently or better the next time so that that when the next shocking pandemic occurs we have looked back found what worked and what didn't and establish a workable system so that we may endure this is an after action review in hopes of being able to predict prepare protect and perhaps even prevent the next pandemic in search for best pandemic practices today's hearing is focused on New York and the March 25 2020 directive from the New York State Department of Health issued under Governor Andrew Cuomo's leadership in this investigation we have reviewed more than half a million documents and we've conducted 10 transcribed interviews with me members of your Administration including you our findings are based on the evidence and testimonies that we have received this is a comprehensive and painstaking Endeavor to find out what happened in New York nursing homes with more than 2,000 pages of testimony publicly released to support our conclusions simply put America cannot move forward without first looking back and that includes examining your directive Governor Mr cromo I think you'll agree that New York state became Ground Zero for much of the pandemic in the United States in the earliest stage of the pandemic covid-19 was a novel virus and there was little information and a lot of unknowns but it quickly became clear that covid-19 was particularly dangerous for the elderly we all saw the deadly consequences of covid-19 in nursing homes was in Washington state the earlier epicenter of the pandemic there was a thousandfold higher risk of poor outcomes specifically hospitalization and death for older people relative to younger populations therefore it was critically important that the public health response prioritize protecting high-risk populations this is an important lesson learned this was understood by the US centers for Medicaid and Medicare services and the US Centers for Disease Control and prevention the CDC on March 13 2020 CMS issued guidance I want to stress the word guidance that specifically directed nursing homes to not accept covid-19 positive patients if they were unable to do so safely and to only accept individuals if the nursing home could follow CDC transmission-based guidance again this guidance was a non-binding federally issued guidance that's reflected by its language the CMS guidance used terms such as can and should consistent with the tone of guidance a nursing home can accept a resident this is a quote a nursing home can accept a resident diagnosed with covid-19 and still under transmission based precautions for covid-19 as long as the facility can follow CDC guidance for transmission based precautions nursing homes should admit any individual should admit any individual that they would normally admit to their facility including individuals from hospitals where a case of Co was or is present this was not the case with the directive issued by your Administration on March 25 2020 why I know like to play semantics and refer to it as an advisory it's clear that it's anything but Miriam Webster defines an advisory as containing or giving advice your advisory refers to itself in the language as a directive in the very first paragraph with your name at the top Governor Cuomo and it says this directive is being issued to clarify expectations for nursing homes receiving residents returning from hospitalization and for nursing homes accepting new admissions Miriam Webster defines a directive as an authoritative order or instrument issued by a high LEL body or official that's what that was on March 25 2020 in your case that carries the weight of all your directive uses words like shall must and prohibit it directs that all nursing homes must comply with the expediated receipt of residents returning from hospitals to nursing hom it directs no resident shall be denied readmission or admission to the nursing home solely based on a confirmed or suspected diagnosis of covid-19 an authoritative directive from the state of New York with the authority of law no resident shall be denied readmission or admission to the nursing home solely based on a confirmed or suspected diagnosis of covid-19 it directs that nursing homes are prohibited prohibited from requiring a hospitalized resident who is determined medically stable to be tested for covid-19 prior to admission or readmission see here's the problem medically stable can still mean highly contagious the language in this directive is not advisory and it's not non-binding the CMS guidance was and still is advisory and non-binding directive with the authority of law supercedes guidance prohibited means not allowed and prohibiting testing for covid-19 is nowhere in the CDC guidance because of this language the March 25 directive was dubbed a must admit order by the public and press and rightfully so those words are not in there but that's how it became known in the common vernacular in the public and press but your directive was not consistent with Federal guidance nor consistent with medical Doctrine you do not put highly contagious patients in with vulnerable patients subject to infection and in this case death your former commissioner of the Department of Health told us that you received the phone call call from the greater New York Hospital Association asking you to do something about nursing home residence that the hospitals wanted to be able to discharge he testified that you were told that these patients needed to go home and while you testified that you were not aware of the directive until April 20 2020 you decided to keep it after learning about it it remained in effect for almost 3 weeks after you knew knew about it Governor you own this it's your name on the letter head this is your directive whether you knew about it or not you're the leader the buck stops with you or at least it should it's important to look at your administration's record two weeks after you learned about the order your office changed the methodology of how nursing home fatalities were categorized you removed out of facility desk that occurred at the hospital altering the full accounting of nursing home deaths during your transcribed interview when describing why you chose not to disclose the number of nursing home residents who died at hospitals you remarked who cares I'll tell you who cares about this doctors and nurses trying to save lives care about this people dying and their families they care about this if someone contracted covid-19 in the nurse nursing home and died at the hospital it matters it it is scientifically significant to know where how and why someone contracted covid-19 and died if we're going to prevent this in the future that is important data in July of 2020 we released a report under the offices of the New York State Department of Health that blame nursing home employees rather than your directive for the deaths that occurred to nursing homes your spokesperson Rich AAP partti described this report as peer-reviewed I'm not sure if Mr oap partti understands the peer review process an effective response to the pandemic required a willingness to adapt to evolving data to new information it will be required for the next pandemic as well it's important to review the data actual data to recognize the dangerous and disastrous consequences of your directive a directive that goes against medical protocols and is considered by many medical professionals to be malpractice you wrote in your book that it wasn't your quote place to filter or edit the truth end quote but it's clear that it seemed to be someone's place you said who cares but we do care about the truth because it's obvious that you don't like the out of facility nursing home deaths it's a truth that matters and that's why we're here today to ask why you made the decisions that you or your executive team made to try and account for your actions and responses without naming and blaming others as you have repeatedly done because we need to help America be prepared for the next pandemic and to protect American lives and because infectious diseases like respiratory viruses don't recognize borders we want to protect lives beyond our borders as well I look forward to a strong on-topic discussion today and I would now like to recognize ranking member Ruiz for the purpose of making an opening State thank you Mr chairman let me Begin by taking a moment to acknowledge the seniors that our nation has lost to covid-19 as well as the grief of the families who lost parents and grandparents during the pandemic each and every life taken by the virus is a tragedy and I'm sorry for your loss with four years having passed since the height of the covid-19 pandemic many of us have become numb to the Grave uncertainty that we faced in 2020 that spring as the novel virus took hold across our nation hospitals overflowed with patients as hundreds and eventually thousands of Americans died each day Frontline healthcare workers were forced to wear garbage bags as gowns and Life as we knew it had come to a total halt things were in absolute chaos and in the midst of that chaos public officials at every level of government were left to make challenging decisions in real time with constantly evolving information and extremely limited resources now with the darkest days of the pandemic behind us thanks to the Biden Harris administration's historic work getting vaccines and arms safely reopening schools and businesses and jump starting our economy we have the opportunity to look back on those decisions and learn from them and in doing so we can acknowledge that in future Public Health crisis we would make certain decisions differently one such case is policies that arguably required the readmission of covid-19 patients back into nursing homes without infection prevention and control in an early effort to relieve Hospital strain in hindsight knowing now what we do about how covid-19 spreads including through aerosolized droplets and by asymptomatic carriers these policies were a misstep and they are something we can learn from as we look to better prepare for future pandemics however we must be comprehensive in our examination of where things went right and where things went wrong in responding to covid-19 and we would be doing our nation seniors and nursing home residents a disservice by not taking a hard and honest look at the data that has emerged from that period and this data shows us that the driving force behind the infections and fatalities that occurred in our nation's nursing homes was broader Community spread which led to Dedicated staff inadvertently bringing the virus into these vulnerable settings and as we look back on policy missteps that put our nation seniors at risk I would be remiss if I did not mention that the issue of community spread the driving Factor is one that was severely exacerbated by the severe shortages of PPE and tests that are Nation experienced at the hand of former president Trump and his administration's early blunders these failures hampered our efforts to get a handle on the outbreak of covid-19 and left states to fend for themselves when it came to obtaining critically needed supplies to protect our most vulnerable as ranking member I've championed objectivity and called for the select subcommittee to put people over politics and in that vein I want to make something abundantly clear any public official who sought to obscure transparency or mislead the American people during the covid-19 pandemic should answer to the American public regardless of political party and that is why the former Governor and members of his administration faced serious questions from both sides sides of the aisle about allegations that they misrepresented nursing home fatality data to evade public scrutiny during the closed door transcribed interviews that led up to this hearing it is also why I have been so forceful in my condemnation of the former president and his Reckless efforts to downplay the threat of covid-19 in the early days of the pandemic the American people deserve honesty transparency and integrity from their public officials full stop at the same time I continue to believe that the greatest thing we can do for the American people is contribute to forward-looking work of preventing and preparing for future pandemics that is why today I am leading select subcommittee Democrats in announcing new legislation to strengthen infection control and prevention efforts in our nation's nursing homes the safer nursing homes Act is forward-looking legislation that makes new robust investments in the centers for Medicare and Medicaid services survey and certification efforts which uncover incidents of poor or substandard care to be available for these crucial oversight activities our new legislation Builds on the Biden Harris administration's Legacy of protecting and advancing the health of our nation seniors earlier this year the administration finalized its Long-Term Care St Staffing rule which establishes new federal standards to ensure that our parents and grandparents and nursing homes receive the highest quality care and in 2022 President Biden and vice president Harris took on big Pharma and signed into law the historic inflation reduction act which kept the monthly cost of insulin at $35 for seniors a month and finally allowed Medicare to negotiate for lower prescription drug prices one thing is certain there is still more we can and must do to protect and Advance the health of our nation seniors as we look to strengthen our nation's preparedness for future pandemics and public health threats it is my hope that the select sub committee can play a meaningful role in this work and in service of every senior who we lost too soon at the hands of the pandemic it is my hope that we can work together every member of the select subcommittee to make progress on this critically important Mission so that we can save future lives with that I yield back thank you Dr Ruiz before we proceed with a witness statement I want to announce a subpoena to the governor of New York for documents related to Mr Cuomo and his March 25th directive The subpoena is vitally important as this inquiry continues and because the current governor is improperly withholding documents from Mr Cuomo's time uh that are responsive to our requests we hope that Governor hokel lives up to her promise of transparency and proceeds without further delay our witness today is Mr Andrew Cuomo Mr Cuomo is governor of the state of New York from 2011 to 2021 pursuant to the commit to committee on oversight and accountability rule 9g the witness will please stand and raise his right hand do you Solly swear or affirm that the testimony that you are about to give is the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you guide thank you let the record show that The W witness answered in the affirmative the select subcommittee certainly appreciates you for being here today governor and we look forward to your testimony let me remind the witness that we have read as much as we could of your written statement uh and it will appear in full in the hearing record as requested please limit your oral statement to six minutes as we agreed upon as a reminder please press the button on the microphone in front of you so that it is on and the members can hear you when you begin to speak the light in front of you will turn green after 5 minutes the light will turn yellow when the red light comes on your six minutes has expired and we would ask that you please wrap up I now recognize Mr Cuomo to give an opening statement thank you first to the families of the victims here today and across the country I am sorry for your loss and I believe you are owed in an apology because this country should have done better there is no reason why we lost one 1.2 million people more than any country on the globe when we have the most sophisticated medical system this committee must deliver real answers so it never happens again and I am here today to help in that mission as you know New York was hit first and worst by Co through no fault of its own I did daily briefings and millions listened in because they wanted no because they needed information and guidance and yes I often vehemently disagree greed with President Trump because from day one he willfully deceived the American people denying CO's very real threat telling us that it was like the flu it would go away by Easter it was a democratic hoax use Clorox and his lies and denials delayed our response let the virus spread and this country never caught up Trump literally said I take no responsibility and he fabricated political attacks blaming Democratic Governors including saying that New York issued a health order on March 25th having covid positive people ENT their nursing homes from hospitals which recklessly and needlessly caused thousands of deaths and then Trump weaponized the Department of Justice starting investigations against New York and three other Democratic states Trump's shocking allegations all false were designed to shift blame from him to Democrats and they did they also created great pain confusion and fear for families and this subcommittee run by Republicans repeats the Trump lies and deceptions and is it inherently makes two powerful admissions first their report does does not deny contrary to what New York Republicans said for 4 years it does not deny that it was actually the Trump Administration the CMS and CDC that first said in early March that covid positive people could go from hospitals to nursing homes even if they were still infectious that was your ruling the committee attempt to argue that the New York advisory didn't follow the CMS guidance and over road safety laws but that has already been investigated by the New York attorney general who said you're wrong and who confirmed the March 25th advisory was in total compliance with federal guidelines and that all New York's nursing home laws remained in effect period in addition the report provides no evidence to support Trump's main allegation repeated for 3 years that New York's guidance killed thousands in nursing homes in fact the report finds no causality whatsoever not one death all hype why because it never happened all credible studies now say that Co came into nursing homes through Community spread and infected staff not Hospital admissions or readmissions numbers don't lie 35 States had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York including Ohio most Republican states actually had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York in 2020 and that fact dams them and reveals their hypocrisy but these are all diversions to blame New York and other states for the culpability of the federal response which was malpractice there was no preparation no PPE no testing no masks no science no leadership as one Republican Governor said about Trump the general was missing an action leaving 50 states bidding against each other for scarce medical supplies it was The covid Hunger Games the Federal government was nowhere to be found New Yorkers remember well those traumatic days when the only sound that echoed through the empty streets were the constant Sirens from ambulances when Mass Graves were being dug on Harts Islands when bodies were being stored in refrigerated trucks our hospital system nearly collapsed and Trump was threatening to send federal troops to blockade New York so no one could leave that was the Federal response and yes New Yorkers were scared but they were New York tough and they showed that when showed that they responded to government leadership when they believed it was based on facts in that moment in New York there were no Democrats and Republicans there were just New Yorkers helping and relying on each other they were Guided by their better Angels they followed science took vaccines wore masks and acted respons responsibly one for another New Yorkers heroic actions brought us back from the brink and saved many many lives when covid started in 2020 we had the highest death rate in the country but at the end of 2021 remarkably New York had a lower death rate than 30 States but even with all New Yorkers did we lost far too many and I'm sorry for every life lost in closing I know this is a political year and I have testified before many many congressional committees but this issue really matters there will be another pandemic and they will pull out your report for guidance I hope it has real answers God forbid 1.2 million people died in vain thank you thank you I now recognize myself for as much time as I may consume for questions with equal time being afforded to the ranking member of the committee uh you know the question is asked did the federal government require that that the state of New York mandate that its nursing homes admit or readmit residents the answer is no did the federal government mandate that your State issue a directive that prohibited a nursing home from testing an an admitted or readmitted resident for covid-19 the answer is no in fact I don't believe I'm aware of any other state Bes I jur that expressly prohibited nursing home from testing returning or newly admitted residents only only in New York the other states that that have been alleged issued similar orders none were in place as long as New York so many states reverse course and I surmise because it doesn't take a doctor to realize that it was a dangerous misguided plan nevertheless Governor you've maintained and testified to us since the pandemic that your directive was based on and consistent with CMS and CDC guidelines you're a lawyer so you know the difference between permissive versus prescripted language I assume uh in and the word shall and must it are they permissive or prescriptive Governor are the word shall and must permissive or prescriptive it depends in the context okay well those words are right in in the directive this was not advis advisory or guidance you've also claimed that the directive followed CMS and CDC guidance did you ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand you'd have to ask the uh Department of Health had those conversations so what you're saying is you did not ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand I'm asking you I can ask them later but I'm asking I spoke to the CMS and CDC about number of matters you speak to them about the directive beforehand your directive I did not speak to them about this directive to the best of my recollection not even after after the directive did you speak with them to the best of my recollection no nor did they speak with me not even to ensure that what you no they never called okay in fact no one we interviewed said they consulted they consulted with them to ensure the applicable science was being followed former White House Corona virus coordinator Dr Deborah Burks she was in charge of all federal guidance in 2020 she testified that your order absolutely violated CMS guidance is it your position that Dr Burks lied my position is you deceive Dr Burks you suggested to Dr Burks that we did not have transmission based precautions in place and that was not true as you know the Attorney General conducted this investigation this is not new news these charges were made four years ago you then had three Department of Justice investigations that reviewed them you then had an attorney general's investigation that reviewed them the attorne Attorney General of New York who governs the New York law and interprets the New York law found exactly contrary to what you are saying and said it repeatedly and you know she said it repeatedly she said quote the March 25th advisory did not require admission of covid-19 patients into nursing homes but rather said the admission could not be denied solely solely Miriam Webster says that means only on the basis of the covid diagnosis the Attorney General said while some commentators and these were Republican commentators she was referring to suggested Department of Health March 25th guidance was a directive that nursing homes accept covid-19 patients even if they could not care for them such an interpretation would violate statutes and regulations that place obligations on nursing homes to care for residents the March 25th guidance was consistent with the CMS Guidance the March 25th guidance was consistent with the CMS guidance if nursing homes have the ability to adhere to infection prevention and control recommendations it was also consistent with CDC published transmission-based precautions that's the Attorney General's position and opinion and that's the law of the state of New York and when you spoke to Dr Burks you posed the question suggesting we did not have infection Protections in place and that was not true Mr crma you're a lawyer so you know the difference between permissive versus prescriptive language I assume uh in in a context I will interpret it for you as the Attorney General did here as the Attorney General did here yeah the word shall and must permissive or prescriptive depends on the context in this context the nursing homes were not directed to accept anyone it was up to the discretion of the nursing home that was made abundantly clear all the laws of the state of New York remained in effect as a matter of fact the law of the state of New York says they can only accept people who they can care for the law of the state of New York says they have to do a full diagnosis before a person comes in if they have a communicable disease they have to have a written letter saying the person is not infectious or an infection plan in place so the every law in the state of New York governing nursing homes was in effect sir well Governor there might be a lot of lawyers who disagree with you um using using it's my excuse me using the word shall and must these words are right here in the directive this was not advisory or guidance it wasn't you have also claimed that the directed followed CMS and CDC guidance did you ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand the Attorney General said it follows CMS guidance and is consistent with CMS guidance when you talk about attorneys yes I'm an attorney yes I'm the former Attorney General of New York but the law is interpreted by the current attorney general that is how she interpreted the law that is the law that was in place that was the law that was in place during the pandemic she has sued nursing homes for uh misconduct during the pandemic based on that law thank you Governor my question was did you ever speak with anyone you Governor Cuomo did you ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand you Governor Cuomo I you asked that question and I answered the question and I said no you or not I said no I answered the question okay thank you not even after correct I said yes and they never called me after you would think if they had a problem with the directive they would have called if it was so outrageous as you didn't even call to you didn't even call to ensure that you were what you were declaring was accurate yes or no I don't know if the Department of Health ISS you Governor Cuomo right now I'm talking to you governoro did you even ATT to ensure that what you were declaring was accurate I'm asking you I don't want to hear about anyone else okay Department of Health issued 400 advisories several per day I did not speak CMS about 400 advisor thank you in fact no one we interviewed said they consulted with them to ensure the applicable science was being followed former White House Corona virus coordinator Dr Deborah Burke she was in charge of all federal guidance in 2020 she testified that your order absolutely violated CMS guidance is it your position that Dr Burks lied you misrepresented the fact I'm asking a question I'm stating what she said I'm not Mis representing anything because this is what she said and I just want you I'm asking you if Dr Burks lied that's my question Dr Burks said that the March 25th advisory which you read to her in your words didn't have appropriate infection control procedures that was by your representation the Attorney General's representation is the law of the state of New York was in effect which has an infection control plan mandates they only accept people who they can handle mandates that if the person is a communicable disease that it's treated before they accept the person or they don't so the infection-based control precautions were in place if you the question to Dr Burks was uh would you allow admission if there were no transmission based precautions and she said no and I would agree but they were in place so many states reverse course announce a subpoena to the governor of New York for documents related to Mr Cuomo and his March 25th directive The subpoena is vitally important as this inquiry continues and because the current governor is improperly withholding documents from Mr Cuomo's time uh that are responsive to our requests we hope that Governor hok lives up to her promise of transparency and proceeds without further delay our witness today is Mr Andrew Cuomo Mr Cuomo is governor of the state of New York from 2011 to 2021 pursuant to the commit to committee on oversight and accountability rule 9g the witness will please stand and raise his right hand do you Solly swear or affirm that the testimony that you are about to give is the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you guide thank you let the record show that the wi witness answered in the affirmative the select subcommittee certainly appreciate you for being here today Governor Cuomo and we look forward to your testimony let me remind the witness that we have read as much as we could of your written statement uh and it will appear in full in the hearing record as requested please limit your oral statement to 6 minutes as we agreed upon as a reminder please press the button on the microphone in front of you so that it is on and the members can hear you when you begin to speak the light in front of you will turn green after 5 minutes the light will turn yellow when the red light comes on your 6 minutes has expired and we would ask that you you please wrap up I now recognize Mr Cuomo to give an opening statement thank you first to the families of the victims here today and across the country I am sorry for your loss and I believe you are owed in an apology because this country should have done better there is no reason why we lost 1.2 million people more than any country on the globe when we have the most sophisticated medical system this committee must deliver real answers so it never happens again and I am here today to help in that mission as you know New York was hit first and worse by Co through no fault of its own I did daily briefings and millions listened in because they wanted no because they needed information and guidance and yes I often vehemently disagreed with President Trump because from day one he willfully deceived the American people denying CO's very real threat telling us that it was like the flu it would go away by Easter it was a democratic hoax used Clorox and his lies and denials delayed our response let the virus spread and this country never caught up Trump literally said I take no responsibility and he fabricated political attacks blaming Democratic Governors including saying that New York issued a Health order on March 25th having covid positive people at their nursing homes from hospitals which recklessly and needlessly caused thousands of deaths and then Trump weaponized the Department of Justice starting investigations against New York and three other Democratic states Trump's shocking allegations all false were designed to shift blame from him to Democrats and they did they also created pain confusion and fear for families and this subcommittee run by Republicans repeats the Trump lies and deceptions and is it inherently makes two powerful admissions first their report does not deny contrary to what New York Republicans said for four years it does not deny that it was actually the Trump Administration the CMS and CDC that first said in early March that covid positive people could go from hospitals to nursing homes even if they were still infectious that was your ruling the committee attempts to argue that the New York advisory didn't follow the CMS guidance and over road safety laws but that has already been investigated by the New York York attorney general who said you're wrong and who confirmed the March 25th advisory was in total compliance with federal guidelines and that all New York's nursing home laws remained in effect period in addition the report provides no evidence to support Trump's main allegation repeated for three years that New York's guidance killed thousands in nursing homes in fact the report finds no causality whatsoever not one death all hype why because it never happened all credible studies now say that Co came into nursing homes through Community spread and infected staff not Hospital admissions or readmissions numbers don't lie 35 States had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York York including Ohio most Republican states actually had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York in 2020 and that fact dams them and reveals their hypocrisy but these are all diversions to blame New York and other states for the culpability of the federal response which was malpractice there was no preparation no PPE no testing no masks no science no leadership as one Republican Governor said about Trump the general was missing an action leaving 50 states bidding against each other for scarce medical supplies it was The covid Hunger Games the federal government was nowhere to be found New Yorkers remember well those traumatic days when the only sound that echoed through the empty streets with the constant sir from ambulances when Mass Graves were being dug on Harts Islands when bodies were being stored in refrigerated trucks our hospital system nearly collapsed and Trump was threatening to send federal troops to blockade New York so no one could leave that was the Federal response and yes New Yorkers were scared but they were New York tough and they showed that when show that they responded to government leadership when they believed it was based on facts in that moment in New York there were no Democrats and Republicans they were just New Yorkers helping and relying on each other they were Guided by their better Angels they followed science took vaccines wore masks and acted responsibly one for another New Yorkers heroic actions brought us back from the brink and saved many many lives when Co started in 2020 we had the highest death rate in the country but at the end of 2021 remarkably New York had a lower death rate than 30 States but even with all New Yorkers did we lost far too many and I am sorry for every life lost in closing I know this is a political year and I have testified before many many congressional committees but this issue really matters there will be another pandemic and they will pull out your report for guidance I hope it has real answers God forbid 1.2 million people died in vain thank you thank you I now recognize myself for as much time as I may consume for questions with equal time being afforded to the ranking member of the committee uh you know the question is asked did the federal government require that that the state of New York mandate that its nursing homes admit or readmit res the answer is no did the federal government mandate that your State issue a directive that prohibited a nursing home from testing an an admitted or readmitted resident for covid-19 the answer is no in fact I don't believe I'm aware of any other state besid jurs that expressly prohibited a nursing home from testing returning or newly admitted residence only only in New York the other states that that have been alleged issued similar orders none were in place as long as New York so many states reverse course and I surmise because it doesn't take a doctor to realize that it was a dangerous misguided plan nevertheless Governor you've maintained and testified to us since the pandemic that your directive was based on and consistent with CMS and CDC guidelines you're a lawyer so you know the difference between permissive versus prescriptive language I assume uh in and the word shall and must it are they permissive or prescriptive Governor are the words shall and must permissive or prescriptive it depends on the context okay well those words are right in in the directive this was not advisory or guidance youve also claimed that the directive followed CMS and CDC guidance did you ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand you'd have to ask the uh Department of Health had those conversations so what you're saying is you did not ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand announce a subpoena to the governor of New York for documents related to Mr Cuomo and his March 20 th directive The subpoena is vitally important as this inquiry continues and because the current governor is improperly withholding documents from Mr Cuomo's time uh that are responsive to our requests we hope that Governor hok lives up to her promise of transparency and proceeds without further delay our witness today is Mr Andrew Cuomo Mr Cuomo is governor of the state of New York from 2011 to 2021 pursuant to the commit to committee on oversight and accountability rule 9g the witness will please stand and raise his right hand do you Solly swear or affirm that the testimony that you are about to give is the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you guide thank you let the record show that the wi witness answered in the affirmative the select subcommittee certainly appreciates you for being here today Governor Cuomo and we look forward to your testimony let me remind the witness that we have read as much as we could of your written statement uh and it will appear in full in the hearing record as requested please limit your oral statement to 6 minutes as we agreed upon as a reminder please press the button on the microphone in front of you said that it is on and the members can hear you when you begin to speak the light in front of you will turn green after 5 minutes the light will turn yellow when the red light comes on your six minutes has expired and we would ask that you please wrap up I now recognize Mr Cuomo to give an opening statement thank you first to the families of the victims here today and across the country I am sorry for your loss and I believe you are owed in an apology because this country should have done better there is no reason why we lost 1.2 million people more than any country on the globe when we have the most sophisticated medical system this committee must deliver real answers so it never happens again and I am here today to help in that mission as you know New York was hit first and worst by Co through no fault of its own I did daily briefings and millions listened in because they wanted no because they needed information and guidance and yes I often vehemently disagreed with President Trump because from day one he willfully deceived the American people denying CO's very real threat telling us that it was like the flu it would go away by Easter it was a democratic hoax used Clorox and his lies and denials delayed our response let the virus spread and this country never caught up Trump literally said I take no responsibility and he fabricated political attacks blaming Democratic Governors including saying that New York issued a health order on March 25th having covid positive people at their nursing homes from hospitals which recklessly and needlessly cause thousands of deaths and then Trump weaponized the Department of Justice starting investigations against New York and three other Democratic states Trump's shocking allegations all false were designed to shift blame from him to Democrats and they did they also created great pain confusion and fear for families and this subcommittee run by Republicans repeats the Trump lies and deceptions and is it in apparently makes two powerful admissions first their report does not deny contrary to what New York Republicans said for four years it does not deny that it was actually the Trump Administration the CMS and CDC that first said in early March that covid positive people could go from hospitals to nursing homes even if they were still infectious that was your ruling the committee attempts to argue that the New York advisory didn't follow the CMS guidance and over road safety laws but that has already been investigated by the New York attorney general who said you're wrong and who confirmed the March 25th advisory was in total compliance with federal guidelines and that all New York's nursing home laws remain AED in effect period in addition the report provides no evidence to support Trump's main allegation repeated for three years that New York's guidance killed thousands in nursing homes in fact the report finds no causality whatsoever not one death all hype why because it never happened all credible studies now now say that covid came into nursing homes through Community spread and infected staff not Hospital admissions or readmissions numbers don't lie 35 States had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York including Ohio most Republican states actually had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York in 2020 and that fact dams them and reveals their hypocrisy but these are all diversions to blame New York and other states for the culpability of the federal response which was malpractice there was no preparation no PPE no testing no masks no science no leadership as one Republican Governor said about Trump the general was missing an action leaving 50 states bidding against each other for scarce medical supplies it was The covid Hunger Games the federal government was nowhere to be found New Yorkers remember well those traumatic days when the only sound that echoed through the empty streets with the constant Sirens from ambulances when Mass Graves were being dug on Harts Islands when bodies were being stored in refrigerated trucks our hospital system nearly collapsed and Trump was threatening to send federal troops to blockade New York so no one could leave that was the Federal response and yes New Yorkers were scared but they were New York tough and they showed that when show that they responded to government leadership when they believed it was based on facts in that moment in New York there were no Democrats and Republicans they were just New Yorkers helping and relying on each other they were Guided by their better Angels they followed science took vaccines wore masks and acted responsibly one for another New Yorkers heroic actions brought us back from the brink and saved many many lives when Co started in 2020 we had the highest death rate in the country but at the end of 2021 remarkably New York had a lower death rate than 30 States but even with all New Yorkers did we lost far too many and I'm sorry for every life lost in closing I know this is a political year and I have testified before many many congressional committees but this issue really matters there will be another pandemic and they will pull out your report for guidance I hope it has real answers God forbid 1.2 million people died in vain thank you thank you I now recognize myself s for as much time as I may consume for questions with equal time being afforded to the ranking member of the committee uh you know the question is asked did the federal government require that that that the state of New York mandate that its nursing homes admit or readmit residents the answer is no did the federal government mandate that your State issue a directive that prohibited a nursing home from testing an an admitted or readmitted resident for covid-19 the answer is no in fact I don't believe I'm aware of any other state besid jurs that expressly prohibited a nursing home from testing returning or newly admitted residents only only in New York the other states that that have been alleged issued similar orders none were in place as long as New York so many states reverse course and I surmise because it doesn't take a doctor to realize that it was a dangerous misguided plan nevertheless Governor you've maintained and testified to us since the pandemic that your directive was based on and consistent with CMS and CDC guidelines you're a lawyer so you know the difference between permissive versus prescriptive language I assume in and the word shall and must it are they permissive or prescriptive Governor are the words shall and must permissive or prescriptive it in the context okay well those words are right in in the directive this was not advisory or guidance you have also claimed that the directive followed CMS and CDC guidance did you ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand you'd have to ask the uh Department of Health had those conversations so what you're saying is you did not ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand announce a subpena to the governor of New York for documents related to Mr Cuomo and his March 25th directive The subpoena is vitally important as this inquiry continues and because the current governor is imp properly withholding documents from Mr Cuomo's time uh that are responsive to our requests we hope that Governor hok lives up to her promise of transparency and proceeds without further delay our witness today is Mr Andrew Cuomo Mr Cuomo is governor of the state of New York from 2011 to 2021 pursuant to the commit to committee on oversight and accountability rule 9g the witness will please stand and raise his right hand do you Solly swear or affirm that the testimony that you are about to give is the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you God thank you let the record show that The W witness answered in the affirmative the select subcommittee certainly appreciate you for being here today Governor Cuomo and we look forward to your testimony let me remind the witness that we have read as much as we could of your written statement uh and it will appear in full in the hearing record as requested please limit your oral statement to 6 minutes as we agreed upon as a reminder please press the button on the microphone in front of you so that it is on and the members can hear you when you begin to speak the light in front of you will turn green after 5 minutes the light will turn yellow when the red light comes on your 6 minutes has expired and we would ask that you please wrap up I now recognize Mr Cuomo to give an opening statement thank you first to the families of the victims here today and across the country I am sorry for your loss and I believe you are owed in an apology because this country should have done better there is no reason why we lost 1.2 million people more than any country on the globe when we have the most sophisticated medical system this committee must deliver real answers so it never happens again and I am here today to help in that mission as you know New York was hit first and worst by Co through no fault of its own I did daily briefings and millions listened in because they wanted no because they needed information and guidance and yes I often vehemently disagreed with President Trump because from day one he willfully deceived the American people denying CO's very real threat telling us that it was like the flu it would go away by Easter it was a democratic hoax used Clorox and his lies and denials delayed our response let the virus spread and this country never caught up Trump literally said I take no responsibility and he fabricated political attacks blaming Democratic Governors including saying that new York issued a health order on March 25th having covid positive people at their nursing homes from hospitals which recklessly and needlessly caus thousands of deaths and then Trump weaponized the Department of Justice starting investigations against New York and three other Democratic states Trump's shocking allegations all false were designed to shift blame from him to Democrats and they did they also created great pain confusion and fear for families and this subcommittee run by Republicans repeats the Trump lies and deceptions and is it inherently makes two powerful admissions first their report does not deny contrary to what New York Republicans said for four years it does not deny that it was actually the Trump Administration the CMS and CDC that first said in early March that covid positive people could go from hospitals to nursing homes even if they were still infectious that was your ruling the committee attempts to argue that the New York advisory didn't follow the CMS guidance and over road safety laws but that has already been investigated by the New York attorney general who said you're wrong and who confirmed the March 25th advisory was in total compliance with federal guidelines and that all New York's nursing home laws remained in effect period in addition the report provides no evidence to support Trump's main allegation repeated for three years that New York's guidance killed thousands in nursing homes in fact the report finds no causality whatsoever not one death all hype why because it never happened all credible studies now say that Co came into nursing homes through Community spread and infected staff not Hospital admissions or readmissions numbers don't lie 35 States had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York including Ohio most Republican states actually had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York in 2020 and that fact dams them and reveals their hypocrisy but these are all diversions to blame New York and other states for the culpability of the federal response which was m practice there was no preparation no PPE no testing no masks no science no leadership as one Republican Governor said about Trump the general was missing an action leaving 50 states bidding against each other for scarce medical supplies it was The covid Hunger Games the federal government was nowhere to be found New Yorkers remember well those traumatic days when the only sound that echoed through the empty streets with the constant Sirens from ambulances when Mass Graves were being dug on Harts Islands when bodies were being stored in refrigerated trucks our hospital system nearly collapsed and Trump was threatening to send federal troops to blockade New York so no one could leave that was the Federal response and yes New Yorkers were scared but they were New York tough and they showed that when show that they responded to government leadership when they believed it was based on facts in that moment in New York there were no Democrats and Republicans there were just New Yorkers helping and relying on each other they were Guided by their better Angels they followed science took vaccines wore masks and acted responsibly one for another New Yorkers heroic actions brought us back from the brink and saved many many lives when Co started in 2020 we had the highest death rate in the country but at the end of 2021 remarkably New York had a lower death rate than 30 States but even with all New Yorkers did we lost far too many and I sorry for every life lost in closing I know this is a political year and I have testified before many many congressional committees but this issue really matters there will be of the pandemic and they will pull out your report for guidance I hope it has real answers God forbid 1.2 million people died in vain thank you thank you I now recognize myself for as much time as I may consumed for questions with equal time being afforded to the ranking member of the committee uh you know the question is asked did the federal government requir that that the state of New York mandate that its nursing homes admit or re admit residents the answer is no did the federal government mandate that your State issue a directive that prohibited a nursing home from testing an an admitted or readmitted resident for covid-19 the answer is no in fact I don't believe I'm aware of any other state Bes I jurs that expressly prohibited a nursing home from testing returning or newly admitted residents only only in New York the other states that that have been alleged issued similar orders none were in place as long as New York so many states reverse course and I surmise because it doesn't take a doctor to realize that it was a dangerous misguided plan nevertheless Governor you've maintained and testified to us since the pandemic that your directive was based on and consistent with CMS and CDC guidelines you're a lawyer so you know the difference between permissive versus prescriptive language I assume uh in and the word shall and must it are they permissive or prescriptive Governor are the words shall and must permissive or prescriptive it depends on the context okay well those words are right in in the directive this was not advisory or guidance you've also claimed that the directive followed CMS and CDC guidance did you ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand you'd have to ask the Department of Health had those conversations so what you're saying is you did not ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand announce a subpoena to the governor of New York for documents related to Mr Cuomo and his March 25th directive The subpoena is vitally important as this inquiry continues and because the current governor is improperly withholding documents from Mr Cuomo's time uh that are responsive to our requests we hope that Governor hokel lives up to her promise of transparency and proceeds without further delay our witness today is Mr Andrew Cuomo Mr Cuomo is governor of the state of New York from 2011 11 to 2021 pursuant to the commit to committee on oversight and accountability rule 9g the witness will please stand and raise his right hand do you pist where affirm that the testimony that you are about to give is the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you God thank you let the record show that The W witness answered in the affirmative this select subcommittee certainly appreciate you for being here today Governor Cuomo and we look forward to your testimony let me remind the witness that we have read as much as we could of your written statement uh and it will appear in full in the hearing record as requested please limit your oral statement to 6 minutes as we agreed upon as a reminder please press the button on the microphone in front of you so that it is on and the members can hear you when you begin to speak the light in front of you will turn green after 5 minutes the light will turn yellow when the red light comes on your six minutes has expired and we would ask that you please wrap up I now recognize Mr quomo to give an opening statement thank you first to the families of the victims here today and across the country I am sorry for your loss and I believe you are owed in an apology because this country should have done better there is no reason why we lost 1.2 million people more than any country on the globe when we have the most sophisticated medical system this committee must deliver real answers so it never happens again and I am here today to help in that mission as you know New York was hit first and worst by Co through no fault of its own I did daily briefings and millions listened in because they wanted no because they needed information and guidance and yes I often vehemently disagreed with President Trump because from day one he willfully deceived the American people denying CO's very real threat telling us that it was like the flu it would go away by Easter it was a democratic hoax used Clorox and his lies and denials delayed our response left the virus spread and this country never caught up Trump literally said I take no responsibility and he fabricated political attacks blaming Democratic Governors including saying that New York issued a health order on March 25th having covid positive people at their nursing homes from hospitals which recklessly and needlessly caused thousands of deaths and then Trump weaponized the Department of Justice starting investigations against New York and three other Democratic states Trump's shocking allegations all false were designed to shift blame from him to Democrats and they did they also created great pain confusion and fear for families and this subcommittee run by Republicans repeats the Trump lies and deceptions and is it inherently makes makes two powerful admissions first their report does not deny contrary to what New York Republicans said for four years it does not deny that it was actually the Trump Administration the CMS and CDC that first said in early March that covid positive people could go from hospitals to nursing homes even if they were still infectious that was your ruling the committee attempts to argue that the New York advisory didn't follow the CMS guidance and over road safety laws but that has already been investigated by the New York attorney general who said you're wrong and who confirmed the March 25th advisory was in total compliance with federal guidelines and that all New York's nursing home laws remained in effect period in addition the report provides no evidence to support Trump's main allegation repeated for 3 years that New York's guidance killed thousands in nursing homes in fact the report finds no causality whatsoever not one death all hype why because it never happened all credible studies now say that Co came into nursing homes through Community spread and infected staff not Hospital admissions or readmissions numbers don't lie 35 States had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York including Ohio most Republican states actually had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York in 2020 and that fact dams them and reveals their hypocrisy but these are all diversions to blame New York and other states for the culpability of the federal response which was malpractice there was no preparation no PPE no testing no masks no science no leadership as one Republican Governor said about Trump the general was missing an action leaving 50 states bidding against each other for scarce Medical supplies it was The covid Hunger Games the federal government was nowhere to be found New Yorkers remember well those traumatic days when the only sound that echoed through the empty streets were the constant Sirens from ambulances when Mass Graves were being dug on Harts Islands when bodies were being stored in refrigerated trucks our hospital system nearly collapsed and Trump was threatened to send federal troops to blockade New York so no one could leave that was the Federal response and yes New Yorkers were scared but they were New York tough and they showed that when showed that they responded to government leadership when they believed it was based on facts in that moment in New York there were no Democrats and Republicans they were just New Yorkers helping and relying on each other they were Guided by their better Angels they followed science took vaccines wore masks and acted responsibly one for another New Yorkers heroic actions brought us back from the brink and saved many many lives when covid started in 2020 we had the highest death rate in the country but at the end of 2021 remarkably New York had a lower death rate than 30 States but even with all New Yorkers did we lost far too many and I am sorry for every life lost in closing I know this is a political year and I have testified before many many congressional committees but this issue really matters there will be another pandemic and they will pull out your report for guidance I hope it has real answers God forbid 1.2 million people died in vain thank you thank you I now recognize myself for as much time as I make consumed for questions with equal time being afforded to the ranking member of the committee uh you know the question is asked did the federal government require that that the state of New York mandate that its nursing homes admit or readmit residence the answer is no did the federal government mandate that your State issue a directive that prohibited a nursing home from testing and an admitted or readmitted resident for covid-19 the answer is no in fact I don't believe if I'm aware of any other state besid jurs that expressly prohibited a nursing home from testing returning or newly admitted residents only only in New York the other states that that had been alleged issued similar orders none were in place as long as New York so many states reverse course and I surmise because it doesn't take a doctor to realize that it was a dangerous misguided plan nevertheless Governor you've maintained and testified to us since the pandemic that your directive was based on and consistent with CMS and CDC guidelines you're a lawyer so you know the difference between permissive versus prescriptive language I assume in and the word shall and must it are they permissive or prescriptive Governor are the words shall and must permissive or prescriptive it depends on the context okay well those words are right in in the directive this was not advisory or guidance youve also claimed that the directive followed CMS and CDC guidance did you ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand you'd have to ask the uh Department of Health had those conversations so what you're saying is you did not ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand announce a subpoena to the governor of New York for documents related to Mr Cuomo and his March 25th directive The subpoena is vitally important as this inquiry continues and because the current governor is improperly withholding documents from Mr Cuomo's time uh that are responsive to our requests we hope that Governor hok lives up to her promise of transparency and proceeds without further delay our witness today is Mr Andrew Cuomo Mr Cuomo is governor of the state of New York from 2011 to 2021 pursuant to the commit to committee on oversight and accountability rule 9g the witness will please stand and raise his right hand do you solist Square affirm that the testimony that you are about to give is the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you guide thank you let the record show that The W witness answered in the affirmative the select subcommittee certainly appreciate you for being here today Governor Cuomo and we look forward to your testimony let me remind the witness that we have read as much as we could of your written statement uh and it will appear in full in the hearing ing record as requested please limit your oral statement to 6 minutes as we agreed upon as a reminder please press the button on the microphone in front of you so that it is on and the members can hear you when you begin to speak the light in front of you will turn green after 5 minutes the light will turn yellow when the red light comes on your six minutes has expired and we would ask that you please wrap up I now recognize Mr Cuomo to give an opening statement thank you first to the families of the victims here today and across the country I am sorry for your loss and I believe you are owed in an apology because this country should have done better there is no reason why we lost 1.2 million people more than any country on the globe when we have the most sophisticated medical system this committee must deliver real answers so so it never happens again and I am here today to help in that mission as you know New York was hit first and worst by Co through no fault of its own I did daily briefings and millions listened in because they wanted no because they needed information and guidance and yes I often vehemently disagreed with President Trump because from day one he willfully deceive the American people denying CO's very real threat telling us that it was like the flu it would go away by Easter it was a democratic hoax used Clorox and his lies and denials delayed our response let the virus spread and this country never caught up Trump literally said I take no responsibility and he fabricated political attacks blaming Democratic Governors including saying that New York issued a health order on March 25th having covid positive people at their nursing homes from hospitals which recklessly and needlessly caused thousands of deaths and then Trump weaponized the Department of Justice starting investigations against New York and three other Democratic states Trump's shocking allegations all false were designed to shift blame from him to Democrats and they did they also created great pain confusion and fear for families and this subcommittee run by Republicans repeats the Trump lies and deceptions and is it inherently makes two powerful admissions first their report does not deny contrary to what New York Republicans said for four years it does not deny that it was actually the Trump Administration the CMS and CDC that first said in early March that covid positive people could go from hospitals to nursing homes even if they were still infectious that was your ruling the committee attempts to argue that the New York advisory didn't follow the CMS guidance and overrode safety laws but that has already been investigated by the New York attorney General who said you're wrong and who confirmed the March 25th advisory was in total compliance with federal guidelines and that all New York's nursing home laws remained in effect period in addition the report provides no evidence to support Trump's main allegation repeated for three years that New York's guidance killed thousands in nursing homes in fact the report finds no no causality whatsoever not one death all hype why because it never happened all credible studies now say that Co came into nursing homes through Community spread and infected staff not Hospital admissions or readmissions numbers don't lie 35 States had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York including Ohio most Republican states actually had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York in 2020 and that fact dams them and reveals their hypocrisy but these are all diversions to blame New York and other states for the culpability of the federal response which was malpractice they was no preparation no PPE no testing no masks no science no leadership as one Republican Governor said about Trump the general was missing an action leaving 50 states bidding against each other for scarce medical supplies it was The covid Hunger Games the federal government was nowhere to be found New Yorkers remember well those traumatic days when the only sound that echoed through the empty streets were the constant Sirens from Amber ambulances when Mass Graves were being dug on Harts Islands when bodies were being stored in refrigerated trucks our hospital system nearly collapsed and Trump was threatening to send federal troops to blockade New York so no one could leave that was the Federal response and yes New Yorkers were scared but they were New York tough and they showed that when showed that they responded to government leadership when they believed it was based on facts in that moment in New York there were no Democrats and Republicans they were just New Yorkers helping and relying on each other they were Guided by their better Angels they followed science took vaccines wore masks and acted responsibly one for another New Yorkers heroic actions brought us back from the brink and saved many many lives when Co started in 2020 we had the highest death rate in the country but at the end of 2021 remarkably New York had a lower death rate than 30 States but even with all New Yorkers did we lost far too many and I'm sorry for every life lost in closing I know this is a political year and I have testified before many many congressional committees but this issue really matters there will be another pandemic and they will pull out your report for guidance I hope it has real answers God forbid 1.2 million people died in vain thank you thank you I now recognize myself for as much time as I may consume for questions with equal time being afforded to the ranking member of the committee uh you know the question is asked did the federal government require that that the state of New York mandate that its nursing homes admit or readmit residence the answer no did the federal government mandate that your State issue a directive that prohibited a nursing home from testing and an admitted or readmitted resident for covid-19 the answer is no in fact I don't believe I'm aware of any other state besid jur that expressly prohibited a nursing home from testing returning or newly admitted residents only only in New York the other states that that have been alleged issue similar orders none were in place as long as New York so many states reverse course and I surmise because it doesn't take a doctor to realize that it was a dangerous misguided plan nevertheless Governor you've maintained and testified to us since the pandemic that your directive was based on and consistent with CMS and CDC guidelines you're a lawyer so you know the difference between permissive versus prescriptive language I assume uh in and the word shall and must it are they permissive or prescriptive Governor are the words shall and must permissive or prescriptive it depends on the context okay well those words are right in in the directive this was not advisory or guidance youve also claimed that the directive followed CMS and CDC guidance did you ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand you'd have to ask the Department of Health had those conversations so what you're saying is you did not ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand announce a subpoena to the governor of New York for documents related to Mr Cuomo and his March 25th directive The subpoena is vitally important as this inquiry continues and because the current governor is improperly withholding documents from Mr Cuomo's time uh that are responsive to our requests we hope that Governor hok lives up to her promise of transparency and proceeds without further delay our witness today is Mr Andrew Cuomo Mr Cuomo is governor of the state of New York from 2011 to 2021 pursuant to the commit to committee on oversight and accountability rule 9g the witness will please stand and raise his right hand do pist where affirm that the testimony that you are about to give is the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you God thank you let the records show that The W witness answered in the affirmative the select subcommittee certainly appreciate you for being here today Governor Cuomo and we look forward to your testimony let me remind the witness that we have read as much as we could of your written statement uh and it will appear in full in the hearing record as requested please limit your oral statement to 6 minutes as we agreed upon as a reminder please press the button on the microphone in front of you so that it is on and the members can hear you when you begin to speak the light in front of you will turn green after 5 minutes the light will turn yellow when the red light comes on your six minutes has expired and we would ask that you please wrap up I now recognize Mr Cuomo to give an opening statement thank you first to the families of the victims here today and across the country I am sorry for your loss and I believe you are owed in an apology because this country should have done done better there is no reason why we lost 1.2 million people more than any country on the globe when we have the most sophisticated medical system this committee must deliver real answers so it never happens again and I am here today to help in that mission as you know New York was hit first and worst by Co through no fault of its own I did daily briefings and millions listened in because they wanted no because they needed information and guidance and yes I often vehemently disagreed with President Trump because from day one he willfully deceived the American people denying CO's very real threat telling us that it was like the flu it would go away by Easter it was a democratic hoax used Clorox and his lies and denials delayed our response let the virus sprad and this country never caught up Trump literally said I take no responsibility and he fabricated political attacks blaming Democratic Governors including saying that New York issued a health order on March 25th having covid positive people at their nursing homes from hospitals which recklessly and needlessly caused thousands of deaths and then Trump weaponized the Department of Justice starting investigations against New York and three other Democratic states Trump's shocking allegations all false were designed to shift blame from him to Democrats and they did they also created great pain confusion and fear for families and this subcommittee run by Republicans repeats the Trump lies and deceptions and is it inherently makes too powerful admissions first their report does not deny contrary to what New York Republicans said for 4 years it does not deny that it was actually the Trump Administration the CMS and CDC that first said in early March that covid positive people could go from hospitals to nursing homes even if they were still infectious that was your ruling the committee attempts to argue that the New York advisory didn't follow the CMS guidance and overrode safety laws but that has already been investigated by the New York attorney general who said you're wrong and who confirmed the March 25th advisory was in total compliance with federal guidelines and that all New York's nursing home laws remained in effect period in addition the report provides no evidence to support Trump's main allegation repeated for 3 years that New York's guidance killed thousands in nursing homes in fact the report finds no causality whatsoever not one death all hype why because it never happened all credible studies now say that Co came into nursing homes through Comm Community spread and infected staff not Hospital admissions or readmissions numbers don't lie 35 States had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York including Ohio most Republican states actually had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York in 2020 and that fact dams them and reveals their hypocrisy y but these are all diversions to blame New York and other states for the culpability of the federal response which was malpractice there was no preparation no PPE no testing no masks no science no leadership as one Republican Governor said about Trump the general was missing an action leaving 50 states bidding against each other for scarce medical supplies it was the covid Hunger Games the federal government was nowhere to be found New Yorkers remember well those traumatic days when the only sound that echoed through the empty streets with the constant Sirens from ambulances when Mass Graves were being dug on Harts Islands when bodies were being stored in refrigerated trucks our hospital system nearly collapsed and Trump was threatening to send Federal troops to blockade New York so no one could leave that was the Federal response and yes New Yorkers were scared but they were New York tough and they showed that when showed that they responded to government leadership when they believed it was based on facts in that moment in New York there were no Democrats and Republicans there were just New Yorkers helping and relying on each other they were Guided by their better Angels they followed science took vaccines wore masks and acted responsibly one for another New Yorkers heroic actions brought us back from the brink and saved many many lives when covid started in 2020 we had the highest death rate in the country but at the end of 2021 remarkably New York had a lower death rate than 30 States but even with all New Yorkers did we lost far too many and and I am sorry for every life lost in closing I know this is a political year and I have testified before many many congressional committees but this issue really matters there will be another pandemic and they will pull out your report for guidance I hope it has real answers God forbid 1.2 million people died in vain thank you thank you I now recognize myself for as much time as I may consume for questions with equal time being afforded to the ranking member of the committee uh you know the question is asked did the federal government require that that the state of New York mandate that its nursing homes admit or readmit residence the answer is no did the federal government mandate that your State issue a directive that prohibited a nursing home from testing an an admitted or readmitted resident for covid-19 the answer is no in fact I don't believe I'm aware of any other State Bes I jurs that expressly prohibited a nursing home from testing returning or newly admitted residents only only in New York the other states that that had been alleged issued similar orders none were in place as long as New York so many states reverse course and I surmise because it doesn't take a doctor to realize that it was a dangerous misguided plan nevertheless Governor you've maintained and testified to us since the pandemic that your directive was based on and consistent with CMS and CDC guidelines you're a lawyer so you know the difference between permissive versus prescriptive language I assume in and the word shall and must it are they permissive or prescriptive Governor are the word shall and must permissive or prescriptive it depends on the context okay well those words are right in in the directive this was not advisory or guidance youve also claimed that the directive followed CMS and CDC guidance did you ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand you'd have to ask the uh Department of Health had those conversations so what you're saying is you did not ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand announce a subpoena to the governor of New York for documents related to Mr Cuomo and his March 25th directive The subpoena is vitally important as this inquiry continues and because the current governor is improperly withholding documents from Mr Cuomo's time uh that are responsive to our requests we hope that governor hok lives up to her promise of transparency and proceeds without further delay our witness today is Mr Andrew Cuomo Mr Cuomo is governor of the state of New York from 2011 to 2021 pursuant to the commit to committee on oversight and accountability rule 9g the witness will please stand and raise his right hand do solist SAR affirm that the testimon that you are about to give is the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you God thank you let the record show that The W witness answered in the affirmative the select subcommittee certainly appreciates you for being here today Governor Cuomo and we look forward to your testimony let me remind the witness that we have read as much as we could of your written statement uh and it will appear in full in the hearing record as requested please limit your oral statement to 6 minutes as we agreed upon as a reminder please press the button on the microphone in front of you so that it is on and the members can hear you when you begin to speak the light in front of you will turn green after 5 minutes the light will turn yellow when the red light comes on your 6 minutes has expired and we would ask that you please wrap up I now recog recogniz Mr Cuomo to give an opening statement thank you first to the families of the victims here today and across the country I am sorry for your loss and I believe you are owed in an apology because this country should have done better there is no reason why we lost 1.2 million people more than any country on the globe when we have the most sophisticated medical system this committee must deliver real answers so it never happens again and I am here today to help in that mission as you know New York was hit first and worst by Co through no fault of its own I did daily briefings and millions listened in because they wanted no because they needed information and guidance and yes I often vehemently disagreed with President Trump because from day one he willfully deceived the American people denying CO's very real threat telling us that it was like the flu it was would go away by Easter it was a democratic hoax used Clorox and his lies and denials delayed our response let the virus spread and this country never caught up Trump literally said I take no responsibility and he fabricated political attacks blaming Democratic Governors including saying that New York issued a health order on March 25th having positive people at their nursing homes from hospitals which recklessly and needlessly caused thousands of deaths and then Trump weaponized the Department of Justice starting investigations against New York and three other Democratic states Trump's shocking allegations all false were designed to shift blame from him to Democrats and they did they also created great pain confusion and fear for families and this subcommittee run by Republicans repeats the Trump lies and deceptions and is it inherently makes two powerful admissions first their report does not deny contrary to what New York Republicans said for four years it does not deny that it was actually the Trump Administration the CMS and CDC that first first said in early March that covid positive people could go from hospitals to nursing homes even if they were still infectious that was your ruling the committee attempts to argue that the New York advisory didn't follow the CMS guidance and over road safety laws but that has already been investigated by the New York attorney general who said you're wrong and who confirmed the March 25th advisory was in total compliance with federal guidelines and that all New York's nursing home laws remained in effect period in addition the report provides no evidence to support Trump's main allegation repeated for three years that New York's guidance killed thousands in nursing homes in fact the report finds no causality whatsoever not one death all hype why because it never happened all credible studies now say that Co came into nursing homes through Community spread and infected staff not Hospital admissions or readmissions numbers don't lie 35 States had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York including Ohio most Republican states actually had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York in 2020 and that fact dams them and reveals their hypocrisy but these are all diversions to blame New York and other states for the culpability of the federal response which was malpractice there was no preparation no people PE no testing no masks no science no leadership as one Republican Governor said about Trump the general was missing in action leaving 50 states bidding against each other for scarce medical supplies it was The covid Hunger Games the federal government was nowhere to be found New Yorkers remember well those traumatic days when the only sound that echoed through the empty streets were the constant Sirens from ambulances when Mass Graves were being dug on Harts Islands when bodies were being stored in refrigerated trucks our hospital system nearly collapsed and Trump was threatening to send federal troops to blockade New York so no one could leave that was the Federal response and yes New Yorkers were scared but they were New York tough and they showed that when showed that they responded to government leaders ship when they believed it was based on facts in that moment in New York there were no Democrats and Republicans there were just New Yorkers helping and relying on each other they were Guided by their better Angels they followed science took vaccines wore masks and acted responsibly one for another New Yorkers heroic actions brought us back from the brink and saved many many lives when Co started in 2020 we had the high EST death rate in the country but at the end of 2021 remarkably New York had a lower death rate than 30 States but even with all New Yorkers did we lost far too many and I'm sorry for every life lost in closing I know this is a political year and I have testified before many many congressional committees but this issue really matters there will be another pandemic and they will pull out your report for guidance I hope it has real answers God forbid 1.2 million people died in vain thank you thank you I now recognize myself for as much time as I may consume for questions with equal time being afforded to the ranking member of the committee uh you know the question is asked did the federal government require that that the state of New York mandate that its nursing homes admit or readmit residence the answer is no did the federal government mandate that your State issue a directive that prohibited a nursing home from testing an an admitted or readmitted resident for covid-19 the answer is no in fact I don't believe I'm aware of any other state besid jurs that expressly prohibited a nursing home from testing returning or newly admitted residents only only in New York the other states that that have been alleged issued similar orders none in place as long as New York so many states reverse course and I surmise because it doesn't take a doctor to realize that it was a dangerous misguided plan nevertheless Governor you've maintained and testified to us since the pandemic that your directive was based on and consistent with CMS and CDC guidelines you're a lawyer so you know the difference between permissive versus prescriptive language I assume uh in and the word shall and must it are they permissive or prescriptive Governor are the words shall and must permissive or prescriptive it depends on the context okay well those words are right in in the directive this was not advisory or guidance you've also claimed that the directive followed CMS and CDC guidance did you ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand you have after as the Department of Health had those conversations so what you're saying is you did not ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand announce a subpoena to the governor of New York for documents related to Mr quomo and his March 25th directive The subpoena is vitally important as this inquiry continues and because the current governor is improperly withholding documents from Mr Cuomo's time uh that are responsive to our requests we hope that Governor hok lives up to her promise of transparency and proceeds without further delay our witness today is Mr Andrew Cuomo Mr Cuomo is governor of the state of New York from 2011 to 2021 pursuant to the commit to committee on oversight and accountability rule 9g the witness will please stand and raise his right hand do you Solly swear or affirm that the testimony that you are about to give is the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you guide thank you let the record show that the wi witness answered in the affirmative the select subcommittee certainly appreciates you for being here today Governor Cuomo and we look forward to your testimony let me remind the witness that we have read as much as we could of your written statement uh and it will appear in full in the hearing record as requested please limit your oral statement to six minutes as we agreed upon as a reminder please press the button on the microphone in front of you so that it is on and the members can hear you when you begin to speak the light in front of you will turn green after 5 minutes the light will turn yellow when the red light comes on your six minutes has expired and we would ask that you please wrap up I now recognize Mr Cuomo to give an opening statement thank you first to the families of the victims here today and across the country I am sorry for your loss and I believe you are owed in an apology because this country should have done better there is no reason why we lost 1.2 million people more than any country on the globe when we have the most sophisticated medical system this committee must deliver real answers so it never happens again and I am here today to help in that mission as you know New York was hit first and worst by Co through no fault of its own I did daily briefings and millions listened in because they wanted no because they needed information and guidance and yes I offer and vehemently disagreed with President Trump because from day one he willfully deceived the American people denying CO's very real threat telling us that it was like the flu it would go away by Easter it was a democratic hoax use Clorox and his lies and denials delayed our response let the virus spread and this country never caught up Trump literally said I take no responsibility and he fabricated political attacks blaming Democratic Governors including saying that New York issued a health order on March 25th having covid positive people at their nursing homes from hospitals which recklessly and needlessly caused thousands of deaths and then Trump weaponized the Department of Justice starting investigations against New York and three other Democratic states Trump's shocking allegations all false were designed to shift blame from him to Democrats and they did they also created great pain confusion and fear for families and this subcommittee run by Republicans repeats the Trump lies and deceptions and is it inherently makes two powerful admissions first first their report does not deny contrary to what New York Republicans said for 4 years it does not deny that it was actually the Trump Administration the CMS and CDC that first said in early March that covid positive people could go from hospitals to nursing homes even if they were still infectious that was your ruling the committee attempts to argue that the New York advisory didn't follow the CMS guidance and overrode safety laws but that has already been investigated by the New York attorney general who said you're wrong and who confirmed the March 25th advisory was in total compliance with federal guidelines and that all New York's nursing home laws remained in effect period in addition the report provides no evidence to support Trump's main allegation repeated for three years that New York's guidance killed thousands in nursing homes in fact the report finds no causality whatsoever not one death all hype why because it never happened all credible studies now say that covid came into nursing homes through Community spread and infected staff not Hospital admissions or readmissions numbers don't lie 35 States had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York including Ohio most Republican states actually had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York in 2020 and that fact dams them and reveals their hypocrisy but these are all diversions to blame New York and other states for the culpability of the federal response which was malpractice there was no preparation no PPE no testing no masks no science no leadership as one Republican Governor said about Trump the general was missing an action leaving 50 states bidding against each other for scarce medical supplies it was the covid hunger Gap names the federal government was nowhere to be found New Yorkers remember well those traumatic days when the only sound that echoed through the empty streets were the constant Sirens from ambulances when Mass Graves were being dug on Harts Islands when bodies were being stored in refrigerated trucks our hospital system nearly collapsed and Trump was threatening to send federal troops to blockade New York so no one could leave that was the Federal response and yes New Yorkers were scared but they were New York tough and they showed that when showed that they responded to government leadership when they believed it was based on facts in that moment in New York there were no Democrats and Republicans there were just New Yorkers helping and relying on each other they were Guided by their better Angels they followed science took vaccines War masks and acted responsibly one for another New Yorker heroic actions brought us back from the brink and saved many many lives when covid started in 2020 we had the highest death rate in the country but at the end of 2021 remarkably New York had a lower death rate than 30 States but even with all New Yorkers did we lost far too many and I'm sorry for every lifee lost in closing I know this is a political year and I have testified before many many congressional committees but this issue really matters there will be another pandemic and they will pull out your report for guidance I hope it has real answers God forbid 1.2 million people died in vain thank you thank you I now recognize myself for as much time as I may consume for questions with equal time being afforded to the ranking member of the committee uh you know the question is asked did the federal government require that that the state of New York mandate that its nursing homes admit or readmit residence the answer is no did the federal government mandate that your State issue a directive that prohibited a nursing home from testing an an admitted or readmitted resident for covid-19 the answer is no in fact I don't believe I'm aware of any other state Bes I jurs that expressly prohibited a nursing home from testing returning or newly admitted residents only only in York the other states that that have been alleged issued similar orders none were in place as long as New York so many states reverse course and I surmise because it doesn't take a doctor to realize that it was a dangerous misguided plan nevertheless Governor you've maintained and testified to us since the pandemic that your directive was based on and consistent with CMS and CDC guidelines you're a lawyer so you know the difference between permissive versus prescriptive language I assume uh in and the word shall and must it are they permissive or prescriptive Governor are the word shall and must permissive or prescriptive it depends on the context okay well those words are right in in the directive this this was not advisory or guidance you've also claimed that the directive followed CMS and CDC guidance did you ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand you'd have to ask the uh Department of Health had those conversations so what you're saying is you did not ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand announce a subpoena to the governor of New York for documents related to Mr Cuomo and his March 25th directive The subpoena is vitally important as this inquiry continues and because the current governor is improperly withholding documents from Mr Cuomo's time uh that are responsive to our requests we hope that Governor hokel lives up to her promise of trans Arcy and proceeds without further delay our witness today is Mr Andrew Cuomo Mr Cuomo is governor of the state of New York from 2011 to 2021 pursuant to the commit to committee on oversight and accountability rule 9g the witness will please stand and raise his right hand do you Solly swear affirm that the testimony that you are about to give is the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you guide thank you let the record show that the when witness answered in the affirmative the select subcommittee certainly appreciate you for being here today Governor Cuomo and we look forward to your testimony let me remind the witness that we have read as much as we could of your written statement uh and it will appear in full in the hearing record as requested please limit your oral statement to 6 minutes as we agreed upon as a reminder please press the button on the microphone in front of you so that it is on and the members can hear you when you begin to speak the light in front of you will turn green after 5 minutes the light will turn yellow when the red light comes on your 6 minutes has expired and we would ask that you please wrap up I now recognize Mr Cuomo to give an opening statement thank you first to the families of the victims here today and across the country I am sorry for your loss and I believe you are owed in an apology because this country should have done better there is no reason why we lost 1.2 million people more than any country on the globe when we have the most sophisticated medical system this committee must deliver real answers so it never happens again and I am here today to help in that as you know New York was hit first and worst by Co through no fault of its own I did daily briefings and millions listened in because they wanted no because they needed information and guidance and yes I often vehemently disagreed with President Trump because from day one he willfully deceived the American people denying Cid's very real threat telling us that it was like the flu it would go away by Easter it was a democratic hoax used cloro and his lies and denials delayed our response let the virus spread and this country never caught up Trump literally said I take no responsibility and he fabricated political attacks blaming Democratic Governors including saying that New York issued a health order on March 25th having covid positive people at their nursing homes from hospitals which recklessly and needlessly caused thousands of deaths and then Trump weaponized the dep Department of Justice starting investigations against New York and three other Democratic states Trump's shocking allegations all false were designed to shift blame from him to Democrats and they did they also created great pain confusion and fear for families and this subcommittee run by Republicans repeats the Trump lies and deceptions and is it inherently makes two powerful admissions first their report does not deny contrary to what New York Republicans said for four years it does not deny that it was actually the Trump Administration the CMS and CDC that first said in early March that covid positive people could go from hospitals to nursing homes even if they were still infectious that was your ruling the committee attempts to argue that the New York advisory didn't follow the CMS guidance and over road safety laws but that has already been investigated by the New York attorney general who said you're wrong and who confirmed the March 25th advisory was in total compliance with federal guidelines and that all New York's nursing home laws remained in effect period in addition the report provides no evidence to support Trump's main allegation repeated for three years that New York's guidance killed thousands in nursing homes in fact the report finds no causality whatsoever not one death all hype why because it never happened all credible studies now say that covid came into nursing homes through Community spread and infected staff not Hospital admissions or readmissions numbers don't lie 35 States had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York including Ohio most Republican states actually had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York in 2020 and that fact dams them and reveals their hypocrisy but these are all diversions to blame New York and other states for the culpability of the federal response which was malpractice there was no preparation no PPE no testing no mask no science no leadership as one Republican Governor said about Trump the general was missing an action leaving 50 states bidding against each other for scarce medical supplies it was The covid Hunger Games the federal government was nowhere to be found New Yorkers remember well those traumatic days when the only sound that echo through the empty streets with the constant Sirens from ambulances when Mass Graves were being dug on Harts Islands when bodies were being stored in refrigerated trucks our hospital system nearly collapsed and Trump was threatening to send federal troops to blockade New York so no one could leave that was the Federal response and yes New Yorkers were scared but they were New York tough and they showed that when show that they responded to government leadership when they believed it was based on facts in that moment in New York there were no Democrats and Republicans there were just New Yorkers helping and relying on each other they were Guided by their better Angels they followed science took vaccines wore masks and acted responsibly one for another New Yorkers heroic actions brought us back from the brink and saved many many lives when Co started in 2020 we had the highest death rate in in the country but at the end of 2021 remarkably New York had a lower death rate than 30 States but even with all New Yorkers did we lost far too many and I'm sorry for every life lost in closing I know this is a political year and I have testified before many many congressional committees but this issue really matters there will be another pandemic and they will pull out your report for guidance I hope it has real answers God forbid 1.2 million people died in vain thank you thank you I now recognize myself for as much time as I may consume for questions with equal time being afforded to the ranking member of the committee uh you know the question is asked did the federal government require that that the state of New York mandate that its nursing homes admit or readmit residents the answer is no did the federal government mandate that your State issue a directive that prohibited a nursing home from testing an an admitted or readmitted resident for co9 the answer is no in fact I don't believe I'm aware of any other state besid jurs that expressly prohibited a nursing home from testing returning or newly admitted residents only only in New York the other states that that have been alleged issued similar orders none were in place as long as New York work so many states reverse course and I surmise because it doesn't take a doctor to realize that it was a dangerous misguided plan nevertheless Governor you've maintained and testified to us since the pandemic that your directive was based on and consistent with CMS and CDC guidelines you're a lawyer so you know the difference between permissive versus prescriptive language I assume in and the word shall and must it are they permissive or prescriptive Governor are the word shall and must permissive or prescriptive it depends on the context okay well those words are right in in the directive this was not advisory or guidance youve also claimed that the directive followed CMS and CDC guidance did you ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand you'd have to ask the uh Department dep of Health had those conversations so what you're saying is you did not ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand announce a subpoena to the governor of New York for documents related to Mr Cuomo and his March 25th directive The subpoena is vitally important as this inquiry continues and because the current governor is improperly withholding documents from Mr Cuomo's time uh that are responsive to our requests we hope that Governor hok lives up to her promise of transparency and proceeds without further delay our witness today is Mr Andrew Cuomo Mr Cuomo is governor of the state of New York from 2011 to 2021 pursuant to the commit to committee on oversight and accountability rule 9g the witness will please stand and raise his right hand do you Solly swear or affirm that the testimony that you are about to give is the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you guide thank you let the record show that The W witness answered in the affirmative the select subcommittee certainly appreciates you for being here today governor cuom and we look forward to your testimony let me remind the witness that we have read as much as we could of your written statement uh and it will appear in full in the hearing record as requested please limit your oral statement to six minutes as we agreed upon as a reminder please press the button on the microphone in front of you said that it is on and the members can hear you when you begin to speak the light in front of you will turn green after 5 minutes the light will turn yellow when the red light comes on your six minutes has expired and we would ask that you please wrap up I now recognize Mr Cuomo to give an opening statement thank you first to the families of the victims here today and across the country I am sorry for your loss and I believe you are owed in an apology because this country should have done better there is no reason why we lost one .2 million people more than any country on the globe when we have the most sophisticated medical system this committee must deliver real answers so it never happens again and I am here today to help in that mission as you know New York was hit first and worst by Co through no fault of its own I did daily briefings and millions listened in because they wanted no because they needed information and guidance and yes I often vehemently disagreed with President Trump because from day one he willfully deceived the American people denying CO's very real threat telling us that it was like the flu it would go away by Easter it was a democratic hoax use Clorox and his lies and denials delayed our response let the virus spread and this country never caught up Trump literally said I take no responsibility and he fabricated political attacks blaming Democratic Governors including saying that New York issued a health order on March 25th having covid positive people ENT their nursing homes from hospitals which recklessly and needlessly caused thousands of deaths and then Trump weaponized the Department of Justice starting investigations against New York and three other Democratic states Trump's shock in allegations all false were designed to shift blame from him to Democrats and they did they also created great pain confusion and fear for families and this subcommittee run by Republicans repeats the Trump lies and deceptions and is it inherently makes two powerful admissions first their report does not not deny contrary to what New York Republicans said for four years it does not deny that it was actually the Trump Administration the CMS and CDC that first said in early March that covid positive people could go from hospitals to nursing homes even if they were still infectious that was your ruling the committee attempts to argue that the New York advisory didn't follow the CMS guidance and over road safety laws but that has already been investigated by the New York attorney general who said you're wrong and who confirmed the March 25th advisory was in total compliance with federal guidelines and that all New York's nursing home laws remained in effect period in addition the report provides no evidence to support Trump's main allegation repeated for three years that New York's guidance killed thousands in nursing homes in fact the report finds no causality whatsoever not one death all hype why because it never happened all credible studies now say that Co came into nursing homes through Community spread and infected staff not Hospital admissions or readmissions numbers don't lie 35 States had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York including Ohio most Republican states actually had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York in 2020 and that fact dams them and reveals their hypocrisy but these are old diversions to blame New York and other states for the culpability of the federal response which was malpractice there was no preparation no PPE no testing no masks no science no leadership as one Republican Governor said about Trump the general was missing an action leaving 50 states bidding against each other for scarce medical supplies it was The covid Hunger Games the Federal government was nowhere to be found New Yorkers remember well those traumatic days when the only sound that echoed through the empty streets were the constant Sirens from ambulances when Mass Graves were being dug on Harts Islands when bodies were being stored in refrigerated trucks our hospital system nearly collapsed and Trump was threatening to send federal troops to blockade New York so no one could leave that was the Federal response and yes New Yorkers were scared but they were New York tough and they showed that when show that they responded to government leadership when they believed it was based on facts in that moment in New York there were no Democrats and Republicans there were just New Yorkers helping and relying on each other they were Guided by their better Angels they followed science took vaccines wore masks and acted respons possibly one for another new yorker's heroic actions brought us back from the brink and saved many many lives when covid started in 2020 we had the highest death rate in the country but at the end of 2021 remarkably New York had a lower death rate than 30 States but even with all New Yorkers did we lost far too many and I'm sorry for every life lost in closing I know this is a political year and I have testified before many many congressional committees but this issue really matters there will be another pandemic and they will pull out your report for guidance I hope it has real answers God forbid 1.2 million people died in vain thank you thank you I now recognize myself for as much time as I may consume for questions with equal time being afforded to the ranking member of of the committee uh you know the question is asked did the federal government require that that the state of New York mandate that its nursing homes admit or readmit residents the answer is no did the federal government mandate that your State issue a directive that prohibited a nursing home from testing an an admitted or readmitted resident for covid-19 the answer is no in fact I don't believe I'm aware of any other state Bes I jurge that expressly prohibited a nurse ing home from testing returning or newly admitted residents only only in New York the other states that that have been alleged issued similar orders none were in place as long as New York so many states reverse course and I surmise because it doesn't take a doctor to realize that it was a dangerous misguided plan nevertheless Governor you've maintained and testified to us since the pandemic that your directive was based on and consistent with CMS and CDC guidelines you're a lawyer so you know the difference between permissive versus prescriptive language I assume in and the word shall and must it are they permissive or prescriptive Governor are the word shall and must permissive or prescriptive it depends on the context okay well those words are right in in the directive this was not advis or guidance you've also claimed that the directive followed CMS and CDC guidance did you ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand you'd have to ask the uh Department of Health had those conversations so what you're saying is you did not ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand announce a subpoena to the governor of New York for documents related to Mr Cuomo and his March 25th directive The subpoena is vitally important as this inquiry continues and because the current governor is improperly withholding documents from Mr Cuomo's time uh that are responsive to our requests we hope that Governor hok lives up to her promise of transparency and proceeds without further delay our witness today is Mr Andrew Cuomo Mr Cuomo is governor of the state of New York from 2011 to 2021 pursuant to the commit to committee on oversight and accountability rule 9g the witness will please stand and raise his right hand do you Solly swear or affirm that the testimony that you are about to give is the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you guide thank you let the record show that the wi witness answered in the affirmative the select subcommittee certainly appreciat you for being here today Governor Cuomo and we look forward to your testimony let we remind the witness that we have read as much as we could of your written statement uh and it will appear in full in the hearing record as requested please limit your oral statement to to 6 minutes as we agreed upon as a reminder please press the button on the microphone in front of you said that it is on and the members can hear you when you begin to speak the light in front of you will turn green after 5 minutes the light will turn yellow when the red light comes on your six minutes has expired and we would ask that you please wrap up I now recognize Mr Cuomo to give an opening statement thank you first to the families of the victims here today and across the country I am sorry for your loss and I believe you are owed in an apology because this country should have done better there is no reason why we lost 1.2 million people more than any country on the globe when we have the most sophisticated medical system this committee must deliver real answers so it never happens again and I am here today to help in that mission as you know New York was hit first and worse by Co through no fault of its own I did daily briefings and millions listened in because they wanted no because they needed information and guidance and yes I often vehemently disagreed with President Trump because from day one he willfully deceived the American people denying CO's very real threat telling us that it was like the flu it would go away by Easter it was a democratic hoax use Clorox and his lies and denials delayed our response let the virus spread and this country never caught up Trump literally said I take no responsibility and he fabricated political attacks blaming Democratic Governors including saying that New York issued a health order on March 25th having covid positive people at their nursing homes from hospitals which recklessly and needlessly caused thousands of deaths and then Trump weaponized the Department of Justice starting investigations against New York and three other Democratic states Trump's shocking allegations all false were designed to shift blame from him to Democrats and they did they also created great pain confusion and fear for families and this subcommittee run by Republicans repeats the Trump lies and deceptions and is it inherently makes two powerful admissions first their report does not deny contrary to what New York Republicans said for four years it does not deny that it was actually the Trump Administration the CMS and CDC that first said in early March that Co positive people could go from hospitals to nursing homes even if they were still infectious that was your ruling the committee attempts to argue that the New York advisory didn't follow the CMS guidance and over road safety laws but that has already been investigated by the New York attorney general who said you're wrong and who confirmed the March 25th advisory was in total compliance with federal guidelines and that all New York's nursing home laws remained in effect period in addition the report provides no evidence to support Trump's main allegation repeated for three years that New York's guidance killed thousands in nursing homes in fact the report finds no causality whatsoever not one death all hype why because it never happened all credible studies now say that covid came into nursing homes through Community spread and infected staff not Hospital admissions or readmissions numbers don't lie 35 States had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York including Ohio most Republican states actually had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York in 2020 and that fact dams them and reveals their hypocrisy but these are all diversions to blame New York and other states for the culpability of the federal response which was malpractice there was no preparation no PPE no testing no masks no science no leadership as one Republican Governor said about Trump the general was missing an action leaving 50 states bidding against each other for scarce medical supplies it was The covid Hunger Games the federal government was nowhere to be found New Yorkers remember well those traumatic days when the only sound that echoed through the empty streets with the constant Sirens from ambulances when Mass Graves were being dug on Harts Island when bodies were being stored in refrigerated trucks our hospital system nearly collapsed and Trump was threatening to send federal troops to blockade New York so no one could leave that was the Federal response and yes New Yorkers were scared but they were New York tough and they showed that when show that they responded to government leadership when they believed it was based on facts in that moment in New York there were no Democrats and Republicans there were just New Yorkers helping and relying on each other they were Guided by their better Angels they followed science took vaccines wore masks and acted responsibly one for another New Yorkers heroic actions brought us back from the brink and saved many many lives when Co started in 2020 we had the highest death rate in the country but the end of 2021 remarkably New York had a lower death rate than 30 States but even with all New Yorkers did we lost far too many and I'm sorry for every life lost in closing I know this is a political year and I have testified before many many congressional committees but this issue really matters there will be another pandemic and they will pull out your report for guidance I hope it has real answers God forbid 1.2 million people died in vain thank you thank you I now recognize myself for as much time as I may consume for questions with equal time being afforded to the ranking member of the committee uh you know the question is asked did the federal government require that that that the state of New York mandate that its nursing homes admit or readmit residents the answer is no did the federal government mandate that your State issue a directive that prohibited a nursing home from testing an an admitted or readmitted resident for covid-19 the answer is no in fact I don't believe I'm aware of any other state Bes I jurs that expressly prohibited a nursing home from testing returning or newly admitted residents only only in New York the other states that that have been alleged issued similar orders none were in place as long as New York so many states reverse course and I surmise because it doesn't take a doctor to realize that it was a dangerous misguided plan nevertheless Governor you've maintained and testified to us since the pandemic that your directive was based on and consistent with CMS and CDC guidelines you're a lawyer so you know the difference between permissive versus prescriptive language I assume uh in and the word shall and must it are they permiss or prescriptive Governor are the words shall and must permissive or prescriptive it depends in the context okay well those words are right in in the directive this was not advisory or guidance you have also claimed that the directive followed CMS and CDC guidance did you ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand you'd have to ask the uh Department of Health had those conversations so what you're saying is you did not ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand announce a subpoena to the governor of New York for documents related to Mr Cuomo and his March 25th directive The subpoena is vitally important as this inquiry continues and and because the current governor is improperly withholding documents from Mr Cuomo's time uh that are responsive to our requests we hope that Governor hok lives up to her promise of transparency and proceeds without further delay our witness today is Mr Andrew Cuomo Mr Cuomo is governor of the state of New York from 2011 to 2021 pursuant to the commit to committee on oversight and accountability rule 9g the witness will please stand and raise his right hand do you Solly swear or affirm that the testimony that you are about to give is the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you guide thank you let the record show that the wi witness answered in the affirmative the select subcommittee certainly appreciate you for being here today Governor Cuomo and we look forward to your testimony let me remind the witness that we have read as much as we could of your written statement uh and it will appear in full in the hearing record as requested please limit your oral statement to 6 minutes as we agreed upon as a reminder please press the button on the microphone in front of you so that it is on and the members can hear you when you begin to speak the light in front of you will turn green after 5 minutes the light will turn yellow when the red light comes on your 6 minutes has expired and we would ask that you please wrap up I now recognize Mr Cuomo to give an opening statement thank you first to the families of the victims here today and across the country I am sorry for your loss and I believe you are owed in an apology because this country should have done better there is no reason why we lost 1.2 million people more than any country on the globe when we have the most sophisticated medical system this committee must deliver real answers so it never happens again and I am here today to help in that mission as you know New York was hit first and worst by Co through no fault of its own I did daily briefings and millions listened in because they wanted no because they needed information and guidance and yes I often vehemently disagreed with President Trump because from day one he willfully deceived the American people denying CO's very real threat telling us that it was like the flu it would go away by Easter it was a democratic hoax used Clorox and his lies and denials delayed our response let the virus spread and this country never caught up Trump literally said I take no responsibility and he fabricated political attacks blaming Democratic Governors including saying that New York issued a health order on March 25th having covid positive people at their nursing homes from hospitals which recklessly and needlessly cause thousands of deaths and then Trump weaponized the Department of Justice starting investigations against New York and three other Democratic states Trump's shocking allegations all fals were designed to shift blame from him to Democrats and they did they also created great pain confusion and fear for families and this subcommittee run by Republicans repeats the Trump lies and deceptions and is it inherently makes two powerful admissions first their report does not deny contrary to what New York Republicans said for four years it does not deny that it was actually the Trump Administration the CMS and CDC that first said in early March that covid positive people could go from hospitals to nursing homes even if they were still infectious that was your ruling the committee attempts to argue that the New York advis didn't follow the CMS guidance and over road safety laws but that has already been investigated by the New York attorney general who said you're wrong and who confirmed the March 25th advisory was in total compliance with federal guidelines and that all New York's nursing home laws remained in effect period in addition the report provides no evidence to support Trump's main allegation repeated for three years that New York's guidance killed thousands in nursing homes in fact the report finds no causality whatsoever not one death all hype why because it never happened all credible studies now say that Co came into nursing homes through Community spread and infected staff not Hospital admissions or re misss numbers don't lie 35 States had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York including Ohio most Republican states actually had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York in 2020 and that fact dams them and reveals their hypocrisy but these are all diversions to blame New York and other states for the culpability of the federal response which was malpractice there was no preparation no PPE no testing no masks no science no leadership as one Republican Governor said about Trump the general was missing an action leaving 50 states bidding against each other for scarce medical supplies it was The covid Hunger Games the federal government was nowhere to be found New Yorkers remember well those traumatic days when the only sound that echoed through the empty streets with the constant Sirens from ambulances when Mass Graves were being dug on Harts Islands when bodies were being stored in refrigerated trucks our hospital system nearly collapsed and Trump was threatening to send federal troops to blockade New York so no one could leave that was the Federal response and yes New Yorkers were scared but they were New York tough and they showed that when show that they responded to government leadership when they believed it was based on facts in that moment in New York there were no Democrats and Republicans they were just New Yorkers helping and relying on each other they were Guided by their better Angels they followed science took vaccines wore masks and acted responsibly one for another New Yorkers heroic actions brought us back from the brink and saved many many lives when Co started in 2020 we had the highest death rate in the country but at the end of 2021 remarkably New York had a lower death rate than 30 States but even with all New Yorkers did we lost far too many and I'm sorry for every life lost in closing I know this is is a political year and I have testified before many many congressional committees but this issue really matters there will be another pandemic and they will pull out your report for guidance I hope it has real answers God forbid 1.2 million people died in vain thank you thank you I now recognize myself for as much time as I may consumed for questions with equal time being afforded to the ranking member of the committee uh you know the question is asked did the federal government require that that that the state of New York mandate that its nursing homes admit or readmit residents the answer is no did the federal government mandate that your State issue a directive that prohibited a nursing home from testing an an admitted or readmitted resident for covid-19 the answer is no in fact I don't believe I'm aware of any other state besid jurs that expressly prohibited a nursing home from t ing returning or newly admitted residents only only in New York the other states that that had been alleged issued similar orders none were in place as long as New York so many states reverse course and I surmise because it doesn't take a doctor to realize that it was a dangerous misguided plan nevertheless Governor you've maintained and testified to us since the pandemic that your directive was based on and consistent with CMS and CDC guidelines you're a lawyer so you know the difference between permissive versus prescriptive language I assume in and the word shall and must it are they permissive or prescriptive Governor are the words shall and must permissive or prescriptive it depends on the context okay well those words are right in in the directive this was not advisory or guidance youve also claim that the directive followed CMS and CDC guidance did you ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand you'd have to ask the uh Department of Health had those conversations so what you're saying is you did not ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand announce a subpoena to the governor of New York for documents related to Mr Cuomo and his March 25th directive The subpoena is vitally important as this inquiry continues and because the current governor is improperly withholding documents from Mr Cuomo's time uh that are responsive to our requests we hope that Governor hokel lives up to her promise of transparency and proceeds without further delay our witness today is Mr Andrew Cuomo Mr Cuomo is governor of the state of New York from 20111 to 2021 pursuant to the commit to committee on oversight and accountability rule 9g the witness will please stand and raise his right hand do you solic s affirm that the testimony that you are about to give is the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you guide thank you let the record show that The W witness answered in the affirmative the select subcommittee certainly appreciates you for being here today Governor Cuomo and we look forward to your testimony let me remind the witness that we have read as much as we could of your written statement uh and it will appear in full in the hearing record as requested please limit your oral statement to 6 minutes as we agreed upon as a reminder please press the button on the microphone in front of you so that it is on and the members can hear you when you begin to speak the light in front of you will turn green after 5 minutes the light will turn yellow when the red light comes on your six minutes has expired and we would ask that you please wrap up I now recognize Mr Cuomo to give an opening statement thank you first to the families of the victims here today and across the country I am sorry for your loss and I believe you are owed in an apology because this country should have done better there is no reason why we lost 1.2 million people more than any country on the globe when we have the most sophisticated medical system this committee must deliver real answers so it never happens again and I am here today to help in that mission as you know New York was hit first in worse by Co through no fault of its own I did daily briefings and millions listened in because they wanted no because they needed information and guidance and yes I often vehemently disagreed with President Trump because from day one he willfully deceived the American people denying CO's very real threat telling us that it was like the flu it would go away by Easter it was a democratic coax use chlora and his lies and denials delayed our response let the virus spread and this country never caught up Trump literally said I take no responsibility and he fabricated political attacks blaming Democratic Governors including saying that New York issued a health order on March 25th having covid positive people at their nursing homes from hospitals which recklessly and need LLY caused thousands of deaths and then Trump weaponized the Department of Justice starting investigations against New York and three other Democratic states Trump's shocking allegations all false were designed to shift blame from him to Democrats and they did they also created great pain confusion and fear for families and this subcommittee run by Republic an repeats the Trump lies and deceptions and is it inherently makes two powerful admissions first their report does not deny contrary to what New York Republicans said for four years it does not deny that it was actually the Trump Administration the CMS and CDC that first said in early March that covid positive people people could go from hospitals to nursing homes even if they were still infectious that was your ruling the committee attempts to argue that the New York advisory didn't follow the CMS guidance and over road safety laws but that has already been investigated by the New York attorney general who said you're wrong and who confirmed the March 25th advisory was in total compliance with federal guidelines and that all New York's nursing home laws remained in effect period in addition the report provides no evidence to support Trump's main allegation repeated for three years that New York's guidance killed thousands in nursing homes in fact the report finds no causality whatsoever not one death all all hype why because it never happened all credible studies now say that Co came into nursing homes through Community spread and infected staff not Hospital admissions or readmissions numbers don't lie 35 States had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York including Ohio most Republican states actually had a high High death rate in nursing homes than New York in 2020 and that fact dams them and reveals their hypocrisy but these are all diversions to blame New York and other states for the culpability of the federal response which was malpractice there was no preparation no PPE no testing no masks no science no leadership as One Republic Governor said about Trump the general was missing an action leaving 50 states bidding against each other for scarce medical supplies it was The covid Hunger Games the federal government was nowhere to be found New Yorkers remember well those traumatic days when the only sound that echoed through the empty streets with the constant Sirens from ambulances when Mass Graves were being dug on hars Islands when body were being stored in refrigerated trucks our hospital system nearly collapsed and Trump was threatening to send federal troops to blockade New York so no one could leave that was the Federal response and yes New Yorkers were scared but they were New York tough and they showed that when showed that they responded to government leadership when they believed it was based on facts in that moment in New New York there were no Democrats and Republicans they were just New Yorkers helping and relying on each other they were Guided by their better Angels they followed science took vaccines wore masks and acted responsibly one for another New Yorkers heroic actions brought us back from the brink and saved many many lives when Co started in 2020 we had the highest death rate in the country but at the end of 2020 21 remarkably New York had a lower death rate than 30 States but even with all New Yorkers did we lost far too many and I am sorry for every life lost in closing I know this is a political year and I have testified before many many congressional committees but this issue really matters there will be another pandemic and they will pull out your report for guidance I hope it has real answers God forbid one .2 million people died in vain thank you thank you I now recognize myself for as much time as I may consume for questions with equal time being afforded to the ranking member of the committee uh you know the question is asked did the federal government require that that the state of New York mandate that its nursing homes admit or readmit residence the answer is no did the federal government mandate that your State issue a directive that prohibited a nursing home from testing an an admitted or readmitted resident for covid-19 the answer is no in fact I don't believe I'm aware of any other state besid jurs that expressly prohibited a nursing home from testing returning or newly admitted residents only only in New York the other states that that have been alleged issued similar orders none were in place as long as New York so many states reverse course and I surmise because it doesn't take a doctor to realize that it was a dangerous misguided plan nevertheless Governor you've maintained and testified to us since the pandemic that your directive was based on and consistent with CMS and CDC guidelines you're a lawyer so you know the difference between permissive versus prescriptive language I assume uh in and the word shall and must it are they permissive or prescriptive Governor are the words shall and must permissive or prescriptive it depends on the context okay well those words are right in in the directive this was not advisory or guidance youve also claimed that the directive followed CMS and CDC guidance did you ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand you'd have to ask the uh Department of Health had those conversations so what you're saying is you did not ever speak with anyone at CMS or CDC about the directive beforehand announce a subpoena to the governor of New York for documents related to Mr Cuomo and his March 25th directive The subpoena is vitally important as this inquiry continues and because the current govern Governor is improperly withholding documents from Mr Cuomo's time uh that are responsive to our requests we hope that Governor hok lives up to her promise of transparency and proceeds without further delay our witness today is Mr Andrew Cuomo Mr Cuomo is governor of the state of New York from 2011 to 2021 pursuant to the commit to committee on oversight and accountability rule 9g the witness will please stand and raise his right hand do you Solly swear affirm that the testimony that you are about to give is the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you God thank you let the record show that The W witness answered in the affirmative the select subcommittee certainly appreciate you for being here today Governor Cuomo and we look forward to your testimony let me remind the witness that we have read as much as we could of your written statement uh and it will appear in full in the hearing record as requested please limit your oral statement to 6 minutes as we agreed upon as a reminder please press the button on the microphone in front of you so that it is on and the members can hear you when you begin to speak the light in front of you will turn green after 5 minutes the light will turn yellow when the red light comes on your 6 minutes has expired and we would ask that you please wrap up I now recognize Mr Cuomo to give an opening statement thank you first to the families of the victims here today and across the country I am sorry for your loss and I believe you are owed in an apology because this country should have done better there is no reason why we lost 1.2 million people more than any country on the globe when we have the most sophisticated medical system this committee must deliver real answers so it never happens again and I am here today to help in that mission as you know New York was hit first and worst by Co through no fault of its own I did daily briefings and millions listened in because they wanted no because they needed information and guidance and yes I often vehemently disagreed with President Trump because from day one he willfully deceived the American people denying CO's very real threat telling us that it was like the flu it would go away by Easter it was a democratic hoax used Clorox and his lies and denials delayed our response let the virus spread and this country never caught up Trump literally said I take no responsibility and he fabricated political attacks blaming Democratic Governors including saying that New York issued a health order on March 25th having covid positive people at their nursing homes from hospitals which recklessly and needlessly caused thousands of deaths and then Trump weaponized the Department of Justice starting investigations against New York and three other Democratic states Trump's shocking allegations all false were designed to shift blame from him to Democrats and they did they also created great pain confusion and fear for families and this subcommittee run by Republicans repeats the Trump lies and deceptions and is it inherently makes two powerful admissions first their report does not deny contrary to what new New York Republicans said for four years it does not deny that it was actually the Trump Administration the CMS and CDC that first said in early March that covid positive people could go from hospitals to nursing homes even if they were still infectious that was your ruling the committee attempts to argue that the New York advisory didn't follow the CMS guidance and over road safety laws but that has already been investigated by the New York attorney general who said you're wrong and who confirmed the March 25th advisory was in total compliance with federal guidelines and that all New York's nursing home laws remained in effect period in addition the report provides no evidence to support Trump's main allegation repeated for three years that New York's guidance killed thousands in nursing homes in fact the report finds no causality whatsoever not one death all hype why because it never happened all credible studies now say that Co came into nursing homes through Community spread and infected staff not Hospital admissions or readmissions number don't lie 35 States had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York including Ohio most Republican states actually had a higher death rate in nursing homes than New York in 2020 and that fact dams them and reveals their hypocrisy but these are all diversions to blame New York and other states for the culpability of the federal response which was malpractice there was no preparation no PPE no testing no masks no science no leadership as one Republican Governor said about Trump the general was missing an action leaving 50 states bidding against each other for scarce medical supplies it was The covid Hunger Games the federal government was nowhere to be found