Documenting a letter I sent via email this morning to Senator Skoufis.
Subject: Independent research on New York nursing home deaths and unresolved data gaps
January 18, 2020
Dear Senator Skoufis,
My name is Dr. Jessica Hockett. I am an independent researcher and writer based in the Chicago area. For several years, I have examined New York’s 2020 mortality data, with nursing home deaths as one area of focus, including how those deaths were recorded, categorized, and reported.
I am writing in light of your work as Chair of the State Senate Investigations Committee, including your questioning of then–Health Commissioner Howard Zucker about the state’s definition and accounting of nursing home deaths — specifically the unresolved question of how many New York nursing home residents died after being transferred to hospitals (described here: https://www.propublica.org/article/local-officials-say-a-nursing-home-dumped-residents-to-die-at-hospitals).
As you noted at the time, the definitions in use appeared to misrepresent the scale of the crisis, yet the state asserted it did not have a fully accurate count. Several years later, we still do not have a transparent, reconciled accounting of how many nursing home residents total died during any wave of the COVID pandemic period, at the NY state, New York City, or national level.
Moreover, despite multiple state and federal reviews, it remains unclear how nursing home resident deaths across care settings were incorporated into official mortality datasets. In my view, this lack of clarity has meaningfully impeded retrospective understanding and accountability.
My analysis is source-documented and nonpartisan, drawing on data obtained over several years via FOIL, as well as New York State releases, CDC/NCHS guidance, CMS datasets, executive orders, contemporaneous public statements, and later revisions and inconsistencies. I am not affiliated with any advocacy organization or political campaign.
I am requesting an opportunity to share materials, citations, or a concise summary of my findings with you or a member of your staff. I can also share recent correspondence with a federal oversight team at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS OIG) regarding missing or unreported data on U.S. nursing home resident deaths during the COVID pandemic period.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
Jessica A. Hockett, PhD
UPDATE: 21 January 2026
The Senator’s office responded and we have scheduled a virtual meeting for 30 January 2026 at 10:30 am U.S. Eastern.
UPDATE: Article about the meeting
One response to “Email to New York State senator James Skoufis requesting opportunity to share information about nursing home resident deaths during COVID emergency periods”
“Addressing Zucker in one exchange, State Senate Investigations Committee Chair James Skoufis, a Democrat from the Hudson Valley where Barnwell is located, said: ‘It’s my opinion that your administration’s definition truly misrepresents the scale of this crisis as a result. So let’s try and get the full picture here and now: How many of New York’s nursing home residents died in hospitals?’” https://www.propublica.org/article/local-officials-say-a-nursing-home-dumped-residents-to-die-at-hospitals
We STILL do NOT know — be it for New York City, New York State, or the U.S.