Gov ‘prioritized’ kin for COV tests
Gov. Cuomo and Health Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker allegedly directed that members of the governor’s family and bigwigs with ties to his administration get priority coronavirus testing last year, according to a report Wednesday night.
Cuomo’s relatives, including his brother, CNN anchor Chris Cuomo (above left), one of their sisters and their mom, Matilda Cuomo, were tested several times during the early days of the pandemic, Albany’s TimesUnion reported.
The testing was conducted by high-level members of the state Health Department, often at private homes, the newspaper said, citing three sources with direct knowledge of the matter.
Others who were given priority testing included the executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, Rick Cotton, and his wife, as well as MTA Chairman Pat Foye and his wife. Some state legislators and their staff were also tested, according to the report.
The Cuomo administration denied the allegations of preferential treatment to the newspaper.
Cuomo spokesman and adviser Rich Azzopardi called the accusations “insincere efforts to rewrite the past.”
“In the early days of this pandemic, when there was a heavy emphasis on contact tracing, we were absolutely going above and beyond to get people testing — including in some instances going to people’s homes, and doorto-door in places like New Rochelle — to take samples from those believed to have been exposed to COVID in order to identify cases and prevent additional ones,” he said.
“Among those we assisted were members of the general public, including legislators, reporters, state workers and their families who feared they had contracted the virus and had the capability to further spread it.”
Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-LI) used the new claims to reiterate his call for Cuomo to resign.
“This latest report of prioritizing his family members for COVID testing at private residences conducted by state Health Department officials and having their tests moved to the front of the line . . . adds to a very long list of reasons why Cuomo’s Gotta Go,” Zeldin, who is considering a run for governor, said in a written statement.
Assemblywoman Yuh-Line Niou (D-Manhattan), who also has called for Cuomo to step down, tweeted “nobody surprised here.”
The allegations come as Cuomo faces several accusations of sexual harassment, including from two current staffers, and a scandal over his administration’s handling of COVID-19 deaths in nursing homes.
The dueling scandals have subjected Cuomo to several investigations, including by state Attorney General Letitia James into the sexual-harassment accusations and the Brooklyn US Attorney’s Office and the FBI on the nursing homes. The state Assembly also has launched an impeachment probe against Cuomo.