New York nursing home a dumping ground for PPE — left to rot outside in the elements

Until very recently a nursing home for veterans in Queens, New York, had “nearly 1,000” boxes of PPE equipment improperly stored on the premises — as the state continued to deliver it to them.

This discovery happened at the New York State Veterans’ Home at St. Albans. The places where residents typically reside have become an unofficial storage facility for the PPE materials.

But it’s not just inside. Outside boxes of gloves, masks, and surgical gowns are stacked up under a blue tarp. Left to the elements to decay and accumulate mold or mildew.

The initial report by The City cites a New York State health department spokesperson, who confirms that the care facility “continues to receive, manage and use a supply of PPE items in an ongoing effort to combat the pandemic, stay prepared for any future developments and abide by state and federal regulations governing PPE supply requirements.”

Employees at the care facility recounted to the outlet an incident where a sizable share of the boxes spilled out onto the road and became fodder for the local wildlife to take shelter in.

Staffers didn’t understand why they keep getting it. “What are they doing with this PPE? We’re overflowing with PPE. It’s like madness.”

The St. Albans nursing home previously spoke out about New York Governor Cuomo’s initial COVID policy and death count scandals.

A follow-up by the New York Post reveals state Sen. Leroy Comrie received complaints from the facility's staff in the past.

He told the outlet that he passed the feedback along to Governor Cuomo’s office.

“It’s only indicative of the fact that the management over there is horrible, which I’ve expressed to the governor more than once, and they promised they would do something with the nursing homes in general but they haven’t done anything.”

The City said it was only until “recently” that rental trucks from the State Department of Health had arrived to move some of the PPE to other storage sites.