It’s a story that has horrified New Jersey, and on Wednesday, Gov. Phil Murphy let residents know he was also looking for answers as to how seven children died of a virus at a long-term medical care center in Passaic County.
State officials on Wednesday could offer few answers as to the cause of the outbreak or why it proved so deadly, according to reports on NorthJersey.com.
However, parents and unions representing workers at the Wanaque Center for Nursing and Rehabilitation said they didn’t learn about the severity of what was happening until it was too late, according to the report.
During a news conference outside the center on Wednesday, Murphy said state officials need to understand the communication surrounding the incident.
State health officials said the facility was one of the few in New Jersey offering the types of services it did, so it could not be closed, the report said.
And while the facility had been cited for instances of poor patient care and unsanitary practices that could help spread infection, state health officials said the citations were not unusual and “low level,” the report said.
Quote of the Day: “While we hope there will be no need to invoke the power, we thought it best to reserve the right to issue subpoenas in the unlikely event it is necessary for the committee to take that course of action.” — state legislative leaders on investigating the hiring practices of Gov. Phil Murphy’s administration after a senior staffer was accused of raping a campaign volunteer last year.
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