WASHINGTON, D.C. - Some Pennsylvania Republican lawmakers are still demanding more answers about COVID-19 deaths in nursing homes statewide. Last week, they sent a letter to Pa. Attorney General Josh Shapiro (D) requesting an investigation after the nursing home fallout in neighboring New York.

The request from most of Pennsylvania’s GOP Congressional delegation comes after New York state’s attorney general, Letitia James, reported in January that New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s administration undercounted that state’s COVID deaths in nursing homes by up to 50 percent. Since then, there is ongoing concern that Cuomo covered up those numbers to avoid a federal investigation into his handling of the virus in nursing homes.

Pa. lawmakers asked Shapiro if his office will offer a similar report. Now, one week later, some say they haven’t received word about whether the investigation will happen.

Last March, the Pennsylvania Department of Health issued guidance similar to New York state, that nursing homes admit or re-admit COVID-19 patients. Current Pennsylvania D.O.H. numbers show that more than 12,300 residents of nursing homes and long-term care facilities have died due to COVID-19, nearly half of the state’s total death count.

The lawmakers writing Shapiro say it’s about transparency and accountability.

“Like anything else, you have to see the data in order to take a real good look at it and analyze know what took place,” said Rep. Mike Kelly (R-Pa.). “All we’re asking is could we please have a full disclosure of what’s taking place.”

“Particularly, (for) the people that can’t care for themselves,” Keller said. “Everybody should be kept safe. But here, we’re talking about people that rely on other people for their care.”

Shapiro’s office responded to the lawmakers last Friday in a statement, which Keller said he had not received as of Wednesday afternoon and had not read until Erie News Now showed him the statement. Shapiro’s office also tweeted the statement Friday, deferring to Pennsylvania Office of the State Inspector General, who he says handles those investigations.

Shapiro noted his office has already pursued previous cases of COVID-related nursing home cases.

“Within weeks of the pandemic hitting Pennsylvania, my office opened criminal investigations into several Pennsylvania nursing homes,” Shapiro said in the statement. “These investigations were publicly announced in May and are ongoing.”

On Tuesday, Pennsylvania U.S. Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) introduced legislation that would provide nearly $1 billion to nursing homes to assist patients and workers during the pandemic.

Nearly 35 percent of all COVID deaths in the U.S. come from long-term care settings, according to Casey’s office.