NJ Democrat, GOP Lawmakers Agree: Nursing Home Probe Needed

NEW JERSEY — A pair of state senators – a Democrat and a Republican – say they want an investigation into how New Jersey handled its response in nursing homes during the pandemic.

On Thursday, Sen. Nia Gill (District 34) and Sen. Joe Pennacchio (District 26) introduced SR-48, a resolution that would establish a special Senate committee to investigate New Jersey’s nursing home pandemic response.

The bill sponsored by Pennacchio, a Republican, and Gill, a Democrat, would create a seven-member committee to investigate “all aspects of the effects of state actions, executive orders and actions, legislation, regulation and state policies on nursing homes, nursing home residents and their families, and nursing home employees during the COVID-19 pandemic.”

The committee would be made up of seven members to be appointed by the Senate president. No more than four can be from the same political party.

Pennacchio said he began calling for a legislative investigation into the state’s nursing home policies in May 2020 and introduced a resolution (SR-68) similar to Gill’s, calling for a Senate Select committee to review the Executive Branch’s pandemic response.

At that time, COVID had claimed more than 4,800 seniors residing in nursing homes, and the number has since climbed, now approaching 10,000, Pennacchio said.

“For New Jerseyans to get the answers they deserve, we must have a transparent and public investigation,” Gill tweeted last week in support of the legislation.

“We must have a comprehensive report on how our system of care failed seniors and their families and how we can improve these systems going forward,” Gill said. “With variants of COVID-19 posing a continuing risk to seniors and other medically at-risk individuals, our state must form a comprehensive and forward-thinking pandemic response plan to ensure the safety of long-term care residents.”

For his part, Pennacchio thanked Gill for reaching across the aisle on a “poignant issue” and partnering on the new resolution.

The senator said it was encouraging to see bipartisan support on the issue.

“Without an official forum, it is obvious New Jersey residents will never learn the truth about what happened in the nursing homes and what could have been done to prevent the tragedies and save lives,” Pennacchio said.

• See related article: NJ Families Can File COVID Nursing Home Suits In State Courts
• See related article: National Guard Aids Sussex County Nursing Homes Amid COVID Spike
• See related article: Still No Answers In Case Of NJ 'Makeshift Morgue' Nursing Home

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