Pennsylvania, a state that has endured a strict lockdown under Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf, has also seen 68% of its coronavirus deaths occur at nursing homes.
Data provided by the Pennsylvania Department of Health and reported Wednesday by the Philadelphia Inquirer also indicated that the the average age of a COVID-19 fatality in the state is 80, the Washington Examiner noted.
Pennsylvania has seen the death of 4,505 residents during the coronavirus pandemic. Like the neighboring governor of New York, Wolf insisted that elderly people infected with the COVID-19 virus be sent back to their nursing home — resulting in the catastrophic transmission of the disease. (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: New York Admits Knowingly Undercounting Nursing Home Deaths After Quietly Changing Reporting Rules)
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo holds his daily briefing at New York Medical College during the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Valhalla, New York, U.S., May 7, 2020. REUTERS/Mike Segar
Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cu0mo demanded on March 25 that nursing homes accept sick residents. Only as the death toll rose did the decision attract media attention and Cuomo finally rescinded that order May 11.
Although Pennsylvania followed the same policy, the state’s health secretary, Rachel Levine, ensured that her 95-year-old mother was not subjected to the same risk by taking her out of nursing home. Levin only admitted to her actions when Harrisburg television station ABC27 discovered what she had done.
“My mother is 95 years old. She is very intelligent and more than competent to make her own decisions,” said Levine, the first transgender cabinet member in Pennsylvania’s state government. (RELATED: REPORT: New York Allowed Coronavirus-Infected Nurses To Work In Nursing Home)
Dr. Rachel Levine, then-physician general nominee, is seen in her office in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania May 4, 2015. REUTERS/Daniel Shanken
The Examiner notes some have questioned the veracity of the the Pennsylvania Department of Health’s statistics — and nursing home deaths could be even higher. A Daily Caller News Foundation exclusive revealed that New York knowingly under reported its nursing homes deaths from coronavirus.
Pennsylvania’s governor ordered lockdowns early in the pandemic that have now provoked pushback from those wanting to reopen the state economy and get back to work. A group of business owners have petitioned the Supreme Court of the United State to force Wolf to end the state lockdown.