Jillian:
Good morning. So how are you attempting to get to the bottom of this and get answers? And how long do you think that’s going to take and will you get to the bottom of it?
Jack Ciattarelli:
Well, we’re going to use every means possible. We’ve submitted a number of OPRA requests regarding all communications that took place between the Murphy administration and the Cuomo administration. Because according to Phil Murphy, they were in lockstep in the very early months of the pandemic. We also want to hear all of the conversations that took place within the administration about how to handle the nursing home environment for COVID 19 patients. But the big revelation this past week was a tape that came out from one of the conversations that took place between the administration and nursing home operators. On which one of the operators said you do realize people will die. And what was deafening was the silence.
Ben:
Gosh, I mean, we have some of the stats here. The number of COVID long-term facility deaths is almost 8,000 and New Jersey, I believe has the highest deaths per capita in the US, the highest nursing home deaths. And yet the attorney general has refused to take action. Can you explain that?
Jack Ciattarelli:
Well, all I can say is it’s an election year, but you’re right new Jersey does lead the nation in nursing home deaths and the nursing homes that are owned and operated by the state, where our veterans resided and to continue to reside, are the ones with the greatest number of deaths. So we want to continue to probe. We would like the Democratic majority in the legislature to have investigational hearings with subpoena power. They’ve done that in the past in situations where people didn’t die. This time, a great many people died, and yet we can’t have investigational hearings with subpoena power.
Jillian:
I want to go back to something you referenced about a minute and a half ago here, this report that there was an administrator that warned that Governor Murphy’s March 31st order would result in seniors’ deaths. Let’s go ahead and pull this up on the screen here. This reads quote, you understand that by asking us to take COVID patients, by demanding we take COVID patients that patients will die in nursing homes that wouldn’t have otherwise died. Had we screened them out. That is disturbing. And I think disturbing for a lot of families who were left now without their loved ones and without answers.
Jack Ciattarelli:
We need answers and those families deserve justice. And the other thing that’s just very, very disturbing is that the governor granted the nursing homes, legal immunity, I feel that he did that because he forced this decision upon them. He put them in a no win position. He forced the impossible upon them. And then he goes on national TV and says that they’re going to have to pay the price. When in fact the greatest number of deaths were in his own nursing homes, the ones owned and operated by the state. The whole thing needs to be investigated.
Jillian:
And just for a record, so people know, we did effort of statement from Governor Murphy, did not get a response back.
Jack Ciattarelli:
I’m not surprised. They have not answered my OPRA request, but we will continue to apply the pressure.
Jillian:
Jack Ciattarelli, thank you for joining us. Appreciate it. And we’ll continue to watch the race and see how it plays out.
