Justice Department requests COVID-19 data from four states which required nursing homes to accept people with coronavirus

by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent

(Worthy News) – The Justice Department has requested COVID-19 data from the governors of four Democratic-run states that the government says may have caused thousands of deaths in nursing homes, Just the News reports. The department said in a statement that the requests “are not accusations of fault or wrongdoing by the states or any other individual or entity, and the department has not reached any conclusions about these matters.”

In a press release Wednesday, the Justice Department named New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Michigan as states which required nursing homes to take in residents with coronavirus, a policy the department says may have placed elderly Americans “unnecessarily at risk.”

“Protecting the rights of some of society’s most vulnerable members, including elderly nursing home residents, is one of our country’s most important obligations,” Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Division Eric Dreiband said in the press release. “We must ensure they are adequately cared for with dignity and respect and not unnecessarily put at risk.”

Writing to the four-state governors, the Justice Department requested numerous types of data, including the number of coronavirus deaths at each nursing home and “all State-issued guidance, directives, advisories, or executive orders regarding admission of persons to Public Nursing Homes.”

According to Reuters, the Justice Department has not requested data from states with similar caseloads at nursing home facilities, including Texas (Republican), Florida (Republican) and California (Democratic).

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