Thread: New York St. Vincent’s Hospital threatened with closure

New York’s St. Vincent’s Hospital threatened with closure


By Ali Ismail
WSWS.org
15 February 2010


New York City’s St. Vincent’s Hospital may be forced to shut its doors for good, following the withdrawal of an offer made by a large hospital network that would have kept the hospital open by eliminating inpatient beds and surgical services, while drastically reducing emergency room services. The plan was to eventually transform the hospital into a community health center.

St. Vincent’s Hospital is located in Manhattan’s Greenwich Village and is currently $700 million in debt. The hospital has recently been relying on state loans to pay its bills as well as its staff.

Hospital management has begun carrying out layoffs and demanding wage cuts from doctors and staff.

On February 5, the New York Times reported that Stan Brezenoff of Continuum Health Partners, a conglomerate of five hospitals in Manhattan and Brooklyn, had sent a letter to Henry J. Amoroso, president and CEO of St Vincent’s Hospital, informing him that he had withdrawn the offer due to the overwhelmingly negative response it received from the State Health Department as well as St Vincent’s employees and board. Local politicians, such as New York City Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn, also voiced opposition to the proposal made by Continuum.

According to the Times report, “In its offer submitted to St. Vincent’s on Jan. 22, Continuum proposed to continue running outpatient facilities for the hospital, on 12th Street and Seventh Avenue, while funneling those who need inpatient care to its own hospitals, St Luke’s Roosevelt on West 58th and Beth Israel, across town on the East Side. Most emergency room and inpatient services would have been eliminated.â€

"If the hospital shuts down, it will be one of many to do so in recent years. In 2009, two former CMC hospitals closed in Queens. As is often the case, the hospitals were located in working class neighborhoods with substantial immigrant populations."

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I don't think anyone here is having trouble connecting the dots between hospitals shutting down in areas with "substantial immigrant populations" and illegal immigration.

Duh! Wake Up America! Wake Up Congresscritters! Wake Up Governors! Wake Up Cities! Deport llegal aliens and reduce the number of immigrants. Then, you'll have neighborhoods comprised of working class American Workers who pay their hospital bills.

It's not complicated. It's very simple.