NEW YORK - New York State's new governor Kathy Hochul acknowledged nearly 12,000 more deaths in the state from COVID-19 than had been publicized by her predecessor Andrew Cuomo, Voice of America (VOA) reported Wednesday.

The governor's office said in a release posted on its official website late Tuesday that 55,395 people had died of COVID-19 in New York based on death certificate data submitted to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), up from the 43,415 that Cuomo reported to the public as of Monday, his final day in office.

The larger number "includes those who died in any location, including hospitals, nursing homes, adult care facilities, at home, in hospice and other settings."