Politics & Government

LICH Professionals Testify at Hospital Hearing

Fight is on to find a new operator after SUNY pulls out.

Health care professionals from Long Island College Hospital stepped to the mic to try and defend their facility Tuesday in Albany.

Before a hearing on the SUNY sustainability plan designed to decide the fate of the struggling hospital, the 1199 health care professionals union and the New York State Nurses Association fought for their livelihoods.

A SUNY board voted last month to stop operating LICH, a decision that is not binding unless approved by the state. 

"It is imperative that we succeed in preserving Long Island College Hospital as the full-service teaching hospital that has been so important to the Brooklyn community for the past 155 years," said Registered Nurse Julie Semente. "We know that every day that we keep LICH open, we are saving lives."

Semente said the nurses and staff currently at the hospital are ready and willing to work with any operator willing to take on the task of putting the hospital back on solid footing.

As reported recently, the state has identified a handful of potential operators, but has made none public so far. 

For the time being, she added, it's a problem that no one currently associated with the hospital knows which organizations have expressed interest in helping to operate LICH.


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