Justice Department declines civil-rights investigations of four states' nursing-home policies
The Justice Department informed Republican members of Congress that it would not open Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act (CRIPA) investigations into government-run nursing homes in New York, after reviewing data the state had submitted; similar letters went to Pennsylvania and Michigan officials earlier that week. The Trump-era civil rights division had sought data in August 2020 from four states — New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Michigan — whose policies required nursing homes to accept COVID-19 patients. The letter did not address a separate reported federal inquiry into the Cuomo administration's handling of nursing-home death data.
Primary quotes
“Based on that review, we have decided not to open a CRIPA investigation of any public nursing facility within New York at this time.”
Deputy Assistant Attorney General Joe Gaeta, DOJ letter, as reported by AP
Flags / open questions
- •DOJ published no release for the declination (its Aug. 2020 data-request URL now 404s); AP account is the primary obtainable source
Linked sources
Related contentions
Unresolved. The 50% undercount is confirmed by the NY AG, but the directive's causal share of nursing-home deaths was never adjudicated — the AG said only that it 'may have' increased risk, and DOJ declined CRIPA investigations in 2021; later data analyses (staffing levels, staff transmission) are cited by both sides without consensus.