WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Monday declined to revive a wrongful death lawsuit that had been rejected by the lower courts against former Gov. Andrew Cuomo over his controversial COVID-19 era nursing home policy.
In its Monday order list, the high court denied certiorari, or appeal, of the lower court’s rulings in the lawsuit against Cuomo led by Daniel Arbeeny, of Brooklyn, who alleged that the former governor’s nursing home policy caused his father’s death in 2020.
“The Supreme Court doesn’t erase what was done and the truth of what happened. Nine thousand COVID-positive patients were forced into nursing homes with deadly consequences,” Arbeeny, who said he was “disappointed” with the decision, told The Post.
“The [Cuomo ] administration lied about the deaths. The facts don’t change. The death toll is horrific. It didn’t have to happen. At some point, the truth will come out.”
Monday’s announcement means that Arbeeny has exhausted his options to appeal. The Supreme Court did not provide a reason for its denial, which is standard practice for the high court in these types of cases.
“For six long years, families have had to deal with unimaginable losses of loved ones from COVID and it doesn’t get easier, especially when that pain was manipulated and politicized,” Cuomo spokesperson Rich Azzopardi told The Post.
“Every investigation and every court to examine these claims has reached the same conclusion: there was no wrongdoing by Governor Cuomo or his administration,” he added. “Today, the Supreme Court joins that list.”
“The facts are settled and the highest court has spoken.”
The case had been dismissed by Eastern District of New York Judge LaShann DeArcy Hall in 2024, in a move that was later upheld by the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
Both of the lower courts had determined that Cuomo, 68, was protected by qualified immunity, which gives government officials liability protections if they didn’t flout clear legal or constitutional principles.
Back in March 2020, Arbeeny’s father, Norman, an 89-year-old Korean War veteran, was in a nursing home. On March 25 of that year, the Cuomo administration issued guidance directing nursing homes to take patients who tested positive for the COVID-19 respiratory illness.
Cuomo’s team argued the move was needed to prevent hospitals from being overwhelmed by the pandemic and keep emergency facilities open for those who were seriously ill.
Ultimately, some 15,000 seniors died from COVID-19 in Empire State nursing homes.
Notably, Arbeeney’s father was discharged from the nursing home in April 2020, about three weeks before that facility took in a COVID-positive patient, according to Azzopardi.
Cuomo also faced controversy over his administration’s undercounting of nursing home-related COVID-19 deaths. A congressional report alleged that Cuomo was involved with lowballing the death count.
Daniel Arbeeny had filed a suit against Cuomo and members of his former administration in 2022. He was joined by other families in the suit.
Cuomo ultimately resigned from office before his term concluded in 2021, following a stunning New York Attorney General report alleging that he sexually harassed almost a dozen women during his time as governor. Cuomo has denied accusations of wrongdoing.
The Cuomo scion then mounted a political comeback bid last year, seeking to become mayor of New York City, before losing both the Democratic primary and general election to Zohran Mamdani.
