During Thursday’s debate in Michigan, Republican Tudor Dixon hammered Gretchen Whitmer over her nursing home policy as well as overall response to coronavirus during the governor’s debate.
When Whitmer was asked by debate moderators whether she would have made different decisions based upon the knowledge that she now has about the pandemic, Whitmer basically said “hindsight’s 20/20”.
This was a new virus, and we knew it. We knew that hospitals were overcrowded and that people were starting to die. We were desperate for ventilators and masks. To store the bodies of those who couldn’t make it, there were refrigerated trucks outside some of our hospitals.
It was a difficult time. It was a desperate time. Our actions have saved thousands of lives, according to studies. Covid has claimed the lives of 35,000 people across our state. These deaths may not be important to others, but they are to me. Each and every one. With the knowledge I have now, I’d make some other decisions. But, we were in a crisis, and lives were at stake.
Dixon sacked Whitmer for her entire policies, including her sending virus-positive patients to nursing homes and her frequent closing of schools. She also tried to downplay the number of deaths in nursing homes.
Even though she tried to conceal the final report on the number of deaths, she was unable to. She tried to conceal a lot about this pandemic. She tried to hide, or she did hide effectively why her department’s director of Health and Human Services left. She even made a secret agreement to pay him off.
Center Square reported that Whitmer had undercounted nursing-home deaths by 42 percent in a recent audit.
New audit reveals Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s administration underestimated COVID-19 nursing-home deaths by 42% or 2,386.
The issue is whether Michigan nursing deaths were high and Whitmer’s COVID-19 policies contributed to the increase in deaths in nursing homes by placing infected patients in housing with those most at risk of contracting COVID-19. The elderly and people with pre-existing conditions are particularly affected by COVID-19. Michigan’s total COVID-19 victims included 84% of those 60 years and older.
According to the Auditor General’s report, the number of COVID-19-related deaths in long-term care facilities was 8,061, which is a significant increase from the 5,675 state-reported figure.
Whitmer rebutted by accusing Dixon of spreading conspiracy theories about vaccines and masks. However, she was again criticized for her excessive lockdown policies, which crippled Michigan’s economy.
