Hochul acknowledges nearly 12,000 more NY COVID-19 fatalities

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New Gov. Kathy Hochul promised more government transparency on her first day in office, and by day’s end her administration had quietly delivered it by acknowledging nearly 12,000 more deaths in the state from COVID-19 than had been publicized by her predecessor, Andrew Cuomo.

New York now reports 55,395 people have died of COVID-19 in New York based on death certificate data submitted to the CDC, up from the roughly 43,400 that Gov. Cuomo had reported to the public as of Monday, his last day in office.

The new governor’s move follows reporting by The Associated Press in July about the Cuomo administration’s use of a much stricter definition of COVID-19 than other populous states hit by the pandemic.

(Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.)