GJC represented the Empire Center for Public Policy to sue the Cuomo administration for its refusal to turn over information related to those who passed away in nursing homes from Covid-19. Empire Center spent months trying to obtain the data through a Freedom of Information Law request.

GJC obtained a court order compelling the Cuomo Department of Health to disclose to Empire Center data on Covid nursing home deaths that had been kept from the public to hide underreported fatalities. On Feb. 3, 2021, a court ruled in favor of the center’s case and ordered the Health Department to produce the requested records. A week later, after delaying for more than six months, the department provided the dates and locations of nearly 16,000 deaths involving long-term care residents, including more than 5,000 that occurred in hospitals.

The revelation was shocking: the covid death toll at nursing homes was approximately 60 percent higher than what was publicly reported. This new information set off a firestorm of criticism, but more importantly, allowed the families of nursing home residents to move one step closer to closure.