“The actions of Commissioner Zucker, or lack thereof, are once again unfortunate and unacceptable. Last week, he was not prepared to testify and answer questions. His lack of transparency and choosing to leave early without answering all the questions from committee members clearly sent the wrong message. And again, refusing to testify today before the Legislature at the Upstate Nursing Home Hearing continues to send a very unsettling and disturbing message about the lack of accountability from this administration.

“It is also very unfortunate and troubling that the Assembly and Senate committee chairs refused to issue a subpoena to compel the Commissioner's testimony. There has clearly been an egregious lack of accountability and transparency from the executive branch in the nursing home crisis which clearly reinforces the need for an independent investigation.

“The simple fact is that this tragedy in our state's nursing homes, with the loss of over 6,000 New Yorkers, warrants honest answers. The families who have had to suffer throughout this ordeal while the leadership in the executive branch continues to point fingers and dodge responsibility deserve the truth. Families deserve answers. We need to know what went wrong here, so no others have to suffer through an ordeal like this,” Palmesano said.