Democratic Senators Statement on Announced Review of Covid-19 Response

TRENTON – Senator Joe Vitale, the Chairman of the Senate Health Committee, Senator Joe Cryan, the chairman of the Senate Military and Veterans Affairs Committee, Senator Vin Gopal, Senator Joe Lagana and Senator Patrick Diegnan, who have been working together to develop reforms at the state-run veterans homes, issued the following joint statement in response to the announcement that the Murphy Administration will commission outside firms to review the state’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic, including an assessment of the performance of long-term care facilities.

“We welcome the outside review as a means of assessing the state’s response to the Covid crisis so we can better learn what was done well and what actions need to be corrected and improved. We can’t shy away from any hard lessons that will help gain a full understanding of the successes and shortcomings in managing what was an unprecedented public health crisis.

“We believe that we still must move forward with thorough, institutional reforms at the state-run veterans homes that suffered tragic losses during the heat of the pandemic and continue to experience reoccurring problems that compromise the health and safety of the residents.

“The deployment of the ‘Mission Critical Team’ to the Menlo Park Veterans Home should help address immediate problems at the home and provide answers for additional changes at all three of the veterans facilities.

“We should also move forward with consideration of plans to separate the operational management of the veterans homes with a cabinet-level department devoted to the needs of the residents and their families. This will provide the expertise and focus that is needed to ensure the quality of care at the facilities, regardless of the cost.

“We will stay engaged in this issue and will continue to work together to make the changes needed so that New Jersey’s veterans homes deliver quality care and treatment.”