Cuomo Passes The Buck On Taking Responsibility for Nursing Home Deaths
At his daily press briefing yesterday, New York State Gov. Andrew Cuomo said that no one is at fault for the COVID-19, or novel coronavirus, deaths in the state.
He explained that he believes no one should be prosecuted or blamed for the deaths due to the virus including the ones that occurred in nursing homes or with nursing home residents.
When it comes to nursing homes, residents and workers were hit hard by the virus, with more than 4,800 nursing home patients dying from it between March 1 and May 1.
Cuomo was criticized for at first allowing residents who tested positive to return to their nursing homes instead of staying in the hospital or quarantining somewhere else. This rule has since been removed.
As of late, however, the number of coronavirus deaths have been decreasing by the day, with yesterday having 139 deaths — down from 799 in a single day at the pandemic’s apex.
To make his point about not blaming anyone for what happened, the governor used this statistic to exemplify his stance, asking who should be held accountable.
“How do we get justice for those families of those 139 deaths?” Cuomo said. “Who can we prosecute for those 139 deaths? Nobody. Mother Nature, God, where did this virus come from? People are going to die by this virus, that is the truth.”
The governor encouraged all New Yorkers who are showing any symptoms of the coronavirus to take advantage of the 40,000 or so tests a day that are being administered at 700 testing sites across the state.
“If you think you have symptoms, get a test. It’s up to you,” he said. “We just don’t have enough New Yorkers coming to be tested.”
Read more about this in this article: CBS News
De Blasio announces fencing installation around city beaches to deter gatherings
credit: Wusel007, Wikimedia Commons
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that the city would begin installing fencing along the city beaches to prevent people from entering them.
They will be fully implemented if the mayor deems it necessary, though he said that he hopes people follow the no sports, no swimming and no large gatherings rules so that that doesn’t need to happen.
“I don’t want to implement it unless we need to, but we have to have it ready,” he said.
Additionally, the mayor said that all New York City Health + Hospitals coronavirus testing sites will begin using “Made in NYC” testing kits. By June 1, there will be 60,000 of these kits made per week.
All of this is to get the city closer to being ready to reopen.
Read more about this in this article: Eyewitness News
Brooklyn federal judge denies Shkreli’s request for early prison release to find COVID cure
credit: House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Wikimedia Commons
Martin Shkreli, also known as “Pharma Bro,” was denied early release from prison by Brooklyn Federal Judge Kiyo Matsumoto on Saturday, which he requested on the ground of finding a coronavirus cure.
Shkreli is just a few years into a seven-year term on securities fraud charges in which he was accused of lying to investors and attempting to impact the stock price of Retrophin, Inc., of which he had been the CEO at the time.
He’s also infamous for jacking up the price of an AIDS drug by 5,000% back in 2015, from $14 a pill to $750.
Recently, he requested that he be released from the medium-security federal prison in Allenwood, Pennsylvania in which he has been serving out his term to be able to help find a cure or drug for coronavirus.
His federal probation officers said that his claim that he could find a cure that has “so far eluded the best medical and scientific minds in the world working around the clock” is “delusional self-aggrandizing behavior.”
Matsumoto agreed with this sentiment.
“The court does not find that releasing Mr. Shkreli will protect the public,” she wrote.
She also noted that Shkreli’s prison currently has no coronavirus cases and that he is perfectly healthy other than some seasonal allergies, for which he takes over-the-counter medication.
“Defendant is a healthy, 37-year-old man with no recent history of preexisting medical conditions that place him at higher risk for COVID-19 and its potentially life-threatening adverse effects,” she wrote. “The sophisticated nature of Mr. Shkreli’s offenses and the fulfillment of the goals of sentencing all counsel against granting the motion for a reduced sentence.”
Read more about this in this article: New York Daily News
Queens church serves more than 100 Iftar meals to Muslim community members
The Jackson Heights Community Church, in conjunction with the Muhammadi Center, served over 100 Iftar meals to Muslim members of the community in celebration of Ramadan.
The interfaith event was held outside of the church so that people could social distance and served to bring together members of one of the hardest-hit areas in the county by the coronavirus.
Iftar meals are traditional meals eaten to break fasts after sundown during Ramadan.
Read more about this in this article: Eyewitness News
