NEW YORK NURSE: December 2007
Related article: Take care of those who care!
by Nancy Webber
One year after the Berger Commission report became law, the state has started to dole out the cash that was promised when the State Legislature first formed the commission back in 2005.
The New York State Department of Health (DOH) recently announced the distribution of more than $362 million to facilities to help defray the cost of complying with the Berger law. More than $550 million was available from both state and federal sources; the state promised to announce more awards in coming weeks.
“For hospitals required to close or to merge with other facilities, the awards will aid in the retirement of debt, the payment of legal and consulting fees, and in the payment of severance packages, retraining, and placement services for displaced employees,” according to a DOH news release.
Cabrini Medical Center in Manhattan, which is on the state’s closure list, was awarded $14 million to defray the costs of closing its doors. The hospital has submitted a plan to the state under which it would convert itself from an acute-care, inpatient facility to an outpatient care facility that would include an urgent care center, a wound care center, and other services. The state has given no formal response to this proposal.
More than 250 RNs now belong to the NYSNA bargaining unit at Cabrini. Over the past year, association staff members have met many times with bargaining unit leaders and hospital management. Under its new configuration, it’s estimated that Cabrini will employ about 67 registered nurses.
“It’s sad for the members, because many of them have worked here for many years and they still don’t know what will happen,” said Mary Lou Cahill, NYSNA nursing representative.
Cahill and NYSNA Labor Representative Leon Bell have prepared a packet for the nurses with information about all NYSNA-represented facilities in the area, including their base salaries, whether they provide the NYSNA pension plan, and how many years of seniority they will accept.
Hospitals try to stay open
Of the hospitals slated for closure, only Saint Vincent’s Midtown has actually shut down. The others continue to argue that their services are needed in their communities and are trying to stay open.
In some cases, survival requires a takeover by a larger facility. Westchester Square Medical Center in the Bronx is hoping to be acquired by New York Presbyterian. As New York Nurse went to press, the hospital had not yet heard from the state whether these plans will satisfy the requirements of the Berger law.
“We’re just waiting to get the word from Albany,” said Ron Abrahall, NYSNA nursing representative for Westchester Square. If the plan is approved, the hospital will continue to function, but as an adjunct of Presbyterian.
Abrahall said the nurses at “the Square” are standing by their patients. Few have resigned to seek more stable employment. “Many of the nurses have worked here for decades,” he said. “They have a strong commitment to the hospital and the community.”
Mergers can cost jobs too
One year ago, nurses at Van Duyn Home and Hospital in Syracuse also saw their future threatened by the Berger law. Although the 526-bed, county-operated nursing facility was not targeted for closure, the commission recommended that it merge with Community General Hospital Skilled Nursing Facility, a private corporation.
The two facilities proposed that Community General close its 50 nursing home beds and a nonprofit corporation be formed to determine ways the two facilities could best use their joint resources.
Although the state DOH has not responded to the plan, it has granted $12.8 million to the facilities. “The nurses are optimistic that Van Duyn will remain a county facility,” said NYSNA nursing representative Marilyn Scott.
At St. Charles Hospital in Port Jefferson, nurses feared a major impact from a forced merger with J.T. Mather Memorial Hospital. The hospital, however, got support from the state Office of Mental Health (OMH) in opposing the conversion of 37 acute-care beds to behavioral health. It also submitted a plan to the state that would keep the ER open and prevent closure of 77 med/surg beds. The state has not formally responded to this proposal.
As expected, significant difficulties have emerged in the proposed merger of Kaleida Health Systems and Erie County Medical Center. The two facilities have gotten nowhere in merger talks. ECMC is managed by a public benefit corporation and many believe it cannot consolidate with Kaleida, a private corporation, without a change in state law.
Other NYSNA-represented facilities that received Berger funding: