Investigator: Governor's Office and Public Health Weren't Questioned in LaSalle Query

The House Veterans’ Affairs Committee held the first hearing into a scathing Inspector General report into the COVID-19 outbreak at the LaSalle Veterans’ Home in November.

House Republicans pressed the lead investigator into the COVID-19 outbreak that killed 36 residents of the LaSalle Veterans’ Home Tuesday about why the report failed to include the role the Illinois Department of Public Health and the Governor’s office played in the outbreak.

Department of Human Services Acting Inspector General Peter Neumer testified before the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, discussing processes of the investigation that led to a scathing 50-page report into failures that lead to the outbreak at the facility.

House Republicans questioned whether an agency under the control of Governor JB Pritzker could investigate the Governor’s office without any conflict of interest.

Neumer said DHS and the outside attorneys they hired were “given absolute latitude to go wherever we needed to go” and repeated multiple times the Governor’s office never inserted itself in the in investigation.  

“We were able to, at all times, follow the facts where we thought they led and make recommendations that we felt were directly linked to the improvement of care for veterans,” Neumer said. “It was a truly independent piece of work.”

But Republicans like Rep. David Welter (R-Morris) complained he didn’t trust the report because it focused on the facility and IDVA and not on the Governor’s office or IDPH.

“This really leaves me wondering what actions IDPH have in this [situation].” Welter said. “Without reporting on the actions of two agencies that had a huge role in the actions, IDPH and the Governor’s office, it leaves us with many questions. This completely leaves out and ignores the Governor’s office and IDPH, and, quite frankly, I’m actually more disturbed today that this was not part of that process.”

Welter told The Illinoize by text message Tuesday night “we just don’t know” if the Governor’s office impeded the investigation.

“I’m sure the Governor didn’t want any negative light on his administration,” Welter said during the hearing. “Quite frankly, I think it’s unacceptable that they weren’t looked at, as well.”

The Governor’s office did not respond to Welter’s comments Tuesday evening.  

Committee Chair Rep. Stephanie Kifowit (D-Oswego) confirmed the Governor’s office and IDPH officials would be present for questions at a hearing Thursday.

Neumer said the investigation was unable to identify the source of the initial outbreak. He also claimed numerous staff at the LaSalle facility had made complaints about communication and implementing infectious disease protocols for some time.

“This wasn’t a onetime only [complaint], in November, but rather, there are folks at the LaSalle Home who are expressing frustrations about communication prior to COVID, prior to 2020,” Neumer said. He also said all five veterans’ homes in the state should implement uniform infectious disease protocols. “I think it would be beneficial to make uniform the response, in particular, to infectious events. Absolutely, that would be helpful.”