New independent report analyzes New Jersey's response to COVID-19 pandemic
TRENTON, N.J. (CBS) – Monday marks four years since the World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 outbreak as a pandemic. Monday is also the day that a first-of-its-kind report was shared on how the state of New Jersey responded to the crisis.
The 910-page report rewinds through a time when masks and lockdowns were part of our communities.
Representatives from Montgomery McCracken Walker & Rhoads LLP said since November of 2022, they've been independently reviewing New Jersey's response, without any interference from the state.
Those involved said the biggest takeaway was the failure of correct health information from authorities.
"That kind of issue is a national security issue and it's an issue that really needs to be addressed on the federal level," Paul Zoubek with Montgomery McCracken Walker & Rhoads LLP said.
They reviewed state documents, health data and interviewed hundreds of people.
"Our meetings were often very emotional. It was very difficult for the state, county, local officials, service providers and health care workers to relive the trauma that they went through," Zoubek said.
According to the law firm behind the report, as of November, the report has cost $4.6 million.
The review also criticized the state health department's order for nursing homes to readmit COVID-positive patients to avoid overcrowding at hospitals.
According to the report, out of the 33,000 lives lost in New Jersey due to COVID-19, 16,000 of those were residents and staff at long-term care facilities.
"The death rates at those facilities were unacceptable and shameful. We owe more to them," Zoubek said.
The pandemic's deadly impact even touched one of the attorneys overseeing the report.
"I certainly never imagined I'd be having an end-of-the-life conversation with my father 3,000 miles away in a facility in California over FaceTime to let him know he was dying of COVID," Zoubek said. "Tens of thousands of families suffered through the same traumatic experience that I did."
To reduce that suffering in the future, the firm provided these recommendations:
- Create emergency plans
- Improve resiliency of long-term care sector
- Improve health equity, data and technology
- Improve state government collaboration
In a statement, Gov. Phil Murphy said in part, "The report both highlights numerous examples of New Jersey's strong leadership during the crisis and identifies gaps in preparedness and structural deficiencies that must be addressed."