23 September 2021: Howard Zucker Announces Resignation

Howard Zucker, NY health commissioner who oversaw Cuomo nursing home scandal, resigns

That didn't take long. Since it's so short, here's the full initial report of New York Health Commissioner Howard Zucker's announced resignation.

Embattled state Health Commissioner Howard Zucker will step down from his position as soon as a replacement can be found, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Thursday.

Zucker was a key figure in the administration of disgraced Gov. Andrew Cuomo, where critics charged he played a central role in its efforts to minimize and disguise the pandemic’s death toll across the state and in its nursing homes.

“He understands that, in this time, I’ve wanted to take the first 45 days to assemble a new team going forward,” Hochul said, announcing Zucker’s departure. “That process is ongoing, and he understands and he respects that.”

She added: “He also has an opportunity to move on to new ventures and I appreciate him his service.”

Note that he's not off the payroll yet, but replacment Governor Hochul will likely accelerate her appointment for his replacement, so his days in power are now numbered. Zucker bears direct responsibility for developing and implementing the deadly 25 March 2020 directive that forced nursing homes to blindly admit COVID patients being dumped out of New York hospitals to free up bed space during New York's first wave of coronavirus infections. He also bears direct responsibility for concealing the full extent of those deaths in reports produced by the NY Department of Health, including blocking the release of that information to state lawmakers and the public.