CNN’s Chris Cuomo allegedly received priority COVID testing thanks to governor brother
March 25, 2021
At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, tests were scarce – especially in hot spots like New York. But CNN anchor Chris Cuomo was able to obtain one, allegedly because of special treatment from his brother, Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s.
According to a report by the Times Union, “High-level members of the state Department of Health were directed last year by Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Health Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker to conduct prioritized coronavirus testing on the governor’s relatives as well as influential people with ties to the administration… Members of Cuomo’s family including his brother, his mother and at least one of his sisters were also tested by top health department officials.”
Dr. Eleanor Adams, an epidemiologist and special advisor to Zucker, allegedly conducted tests at Chris Cuomo’s private Long Island residence.
From the Times Union: “One of the people familiar with the matter said that the people with close ties to the governor, including his relatives, would have their samples moved to the front of the line at Wadsworth and be given priority. They were referred to as ‘critical samples.’”
Chris Cuomo famously tested positive for COVID-19 on March 31 of last year and began to quarantine in the basement of his home, where he continued hosting his show on CNN. At the time, Andrew Cuomo called the virus “the great equalizer.”
The Daily Caller reported that “Less than a week prior, Cuomo’s administration had issued an order prohibiting nursing homes from testing incoming patients hospitalized for the virus.”
The March 25 order states: “No resident shall be denied re-admission or admission to the NH solely based on a confirmed or suspected diagnosis of COVID-19. NHs are prohibited from requiring a hospitalized resident who is determined medically stable to be tested for COVID-19 prior to admission or readmission.”
In a statement to the Washington Post, a CNN spokesman said, “We generally do not get involved in the medical decisions of our employees. However, it is not surprising that in the earliest days of a once-in-a-century global pandemic, when Chris was showing symptoms and was concerned about possible spread, he turned to anyone he could for advice and assistance, as any human being would.”
This is the most recent in a string of scandals for the Governor of New York, who has also been accused of covering up nursing home deaths in his state and faces multiple allegations of sexual harassment.