McLean County Times

Following a state audit of the 2020 LaSalle Veterans' Home COVID-19 outbreak, Illinois Sen. Sue Rezin (R-Morris) is denouncing Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker for allegedly failing to take action that caused dozens of deaths.

A state audit found that during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, severe mismanagement at the LaSalle Veterans' Home led to the deaths of 36 veterans who died from COVID-19, CBS Chicago News reported. 

Rezin made her comments at a news conference and was joined by other Illinois state leaders and legislators. 

"This tragedy comes down to a failure of leadership by Gov. Pritzker," Rezin said. "As a candidate, he said it’s our responsibility to defend our veterans and keep them safe, that's not something Gov. Rauner did. Let me say this: That's not something Gov. Pritzker did either."

Rezin said Pritzker had every opportunity to improve the veterans' care.

"Starting with a 2019 Illinois auditor general’s recommendation to develop a timely on-site policy by the Department of Public Health when an outbreak occurs at a veterans home. By not implementing the 2019 recommendation, it proved fatal during the outbreak at the LaSalle Veterans’ Home," she said. 

"Although the Illinois Department of Public Health officials were informed of the increasing positive cases almost on a daily basis, IDPH did not identify and respond to the seriousness of the outbreak," the auditor wrote, according to CBS News. "All but four residents who died were positive prior to the date of the IDPH site visit."

Rezin said the three-day delay at Quincy turned into an 11-day delay at LaSalle.

"IDPH still lacks such a policy today. A timely on-site response is essential to slow the spread of an outbreak and as this month's auditor-general report stated, IDPH did nothing to offer any assistance or advice as to how to slow the spread at the home. There's no question that residents were more protected following IDPH’s on-site visit nearly two weeks after the outbreak than before IDPH decided to show up. The governor's office, IDVA and IDPH had the same data but no one acted on it for nearly two weeks," Rezin said.

In response to the audit, Pritzker brought up the political environment surrounding the pandemic in 2020, CBS reported.

"Republicans told them that they need not wear masks," Pritzker said. "They told people that they didn't need to get vaccinated. They told people that COVID wasn't serious."

Rezin said she's offered a series of legislative bills to change how the state responds to outbreaks.

"I called on the governor multiple times over the past 14 months to get these responses and proposals called, yet his office has refused to respond. It's puzzling and it's frustrating why a governor is so disengaged in this process of fixing the tragic mistakes that led to 36 veterans dying at the LaSalle veterans home. Gov. Pritzker is not defending our veterans and keeping them safe. It's time for the governor to set aside his pride and his lack of leadership and commitment to supporting my legislation solutions, which he’s ignored for the last year. Doing nothing will only lead us down the path of another Quincy and LaSalle. Our veterans deserve more than failed leadership and shifting blame to others," she said.

The director of the LaSalle Veterans' Home resigned under pressure following the outbreak, according to CBS News.