nursing home
© Alvaro Calvo/Getty ImagesHUESCA, SPAIN - APRIL 27: Alicia, a care worker holds the hands of a patient on April 27, 2020 in Grañen, Huesca, Spain. The care workers at the Los Monegros nursing home in Grañén left after being confined in the center for nearly a month. Since March 30 they decided to remain with their residents to avoid the spread of Covid-19 infection.
The Justice Department requested coronavirus data from the governors of states which issued orders which may have resulted in the deaths of thousands of elderly nursing home patients.

Michigan is one of the states the DOJ is asking for information from.

New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Michigan all required nursing homes to admit COVID-19 patients to their vulnerable populations, without adequate testing according to the Department of Justice.

Governor Gretchen Whitmer released the following statement:
"Protecting the health, safety, and wellbeing of our seniors and most vulnerable residents has been a top priority throughout this crisis. The fact that this letter was sent during the middle of the Republican National Convention week to four Democratic governors should make it crystal clear that this is nothing more than election year politics by an administration that is more concerned with the president's re-election campaign than protecting Michigan seniors. We will review this letter and respond as appropriate, however, Americans would all be better served if the Trump administration stopped the partisan games and focused on delivering a real plan to defeat COVID-19."
"Protecting the rights of some of society's most vulnerable members, including elderly nursing home residents, is one of our country's most important obligations," said Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Division Eric Dreiband. "We must ensure they are adequately cared for with dignity and respect and not unnecessarily put at risk."

The Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division is evaluating whether to initiate investigations under the federal "Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act" (CRIPA), this protects the civil rights of persons in state-run nursing homes, among others.