White Plains CitizeNetReporter - More Job Losses,Service Losses Ahead at WMC? Medical Services at Risk?

WPCNR BLACK COFFEE News & Comment by WPCNR Westchester County Roving Correspondent, Nancy King. January 9, 2011: Michael D. Israel, CEO of the Westchester Health Care Corporation, a public benefits corporation DBA Westchester County Medical Center appears to be continuing with his plan to turn the WMC into a not for profit institution even if he has to disassemble it one piece at a time. Since taking over as CEO of the medical center in 2007, Israel has cut the following programs and services.

1. In 2009, Israel announced that the Taylor Care Facility, a long term skilled nursing and rehabilitative building would be closing. Once known as “The County Home”, the Ruth Taylor Institute, a facility that was home for those nursing home patients that were difficult to place and those who were in permanent ventilation. Of course, most of these patients were on Medicaid. And of course there is no money to be made from those patients who receive Medicaid. So it was decided that this facility would be closed, patients moved elsewhere and the Taylor Facility became the newly renovated executive wing of the WMC. In this building, the several dozen Vice Presidents maintain lush offices and conference rooms. 2. Soon to follow was the elimination of Ward 29, the floor of the hospital that provided inmate care to those who were incarcerated at the County Jail and Penitentiary. However, Ward 29 also serviced inmates from other facilities in the area. Of course it was staffed by staff employed by the medical center in addition to County correction officers. Again, not a money maker and when newly elected CE (County Executive)Rob Astorino decided to save a few bucks, he contracted with a Tennessee company to provide inmate care at a lower cost. In a classic tug of war between the two executives, Astorino eventually did replace Ward 29 and those who provided care to those inmates, lost their jobs. 3. Not long afterwards, it was announced that the Westchester County Health Care Corporation would no longer be providing laundry service to the Grasslands Reservation. And so the old laundry building that one passes on the entrance to reservation was abandoned and replaced with hourly workers from Sodexho. Sodexho already was on site providing cafeteria service to patients and staff alike but now they were providing laundry service and soon to follow would be providing courier/patient transport services as well. 4. The Behavioral Health Center has also been a long term staple of the Westchester Medical Center. It provides inpatient care to many of the most violent mentally ill patients in the lower Hudson Valley. And since mental illness doesn’t discriminate between youth and adults, BHC provides services to patients of all ages. In the summer of 2011, Israel and the Board of Directors made a decision to discontinue CPEP, the community outreach mental health crisis team. This is the same team that would go out into the county and deal with those people in crisis who could possibly be a threat to themselves and those around. Again, the seriously mentally ill are often on Medicaid and therefore are not big profit makers for the institution. And again, the neediest population was left without an important safety net and those workers were left without a job. 5.Finally on the first week of 2012, Mr. Israel sent a general email to staff that within the next eightthere would be a general re-organization of BHC itself (Behavior Health Center). That component of World Class Medicine would be privatized and taken over by Pennsylvania based Liberty Health Care Corporation. More than 100 staff members would be losing their jobs. Israel did inform those staffers however that it was not all doom and gloom; they could re-apply for their jobs with Liberty. Of course, they might be able to get their jobs back at a $20,000 reduction in annual salary and they will have fewer benefits if any with the new company. So it seems that again, it’s the patients and the staff who once again may pay the price for dismantling this public benefits corporation piece by piece. It is no secret that the CEO and the Board of Directors would like to dismantle this public benefits corporation. It was reported that the CEO and board members had traveled to Albany last spring to explore how quickly this could be done. Since it takes a long time to restructure that sort of corporation, it seems the decision has been made to expedite the process by picking apart the WMC piece by piece. At its very core, a PBC,(Public Benefits Corporation) provides care to all regardless of their ability to pay for their care. A non-profit, private hospital can choose to care for whomever they want and it is obvious that only those who have great insurance or are a private pay will be welcomed at what the board hopes will become this region’s premier teaching hospital. As the article goes to press, CMS, (Centers for Midicare & Medicaid Services) the Federal Agency that oversees, whether a facility is worthy of not only Medicaid and Medicare payments arrived Monday morning to inspect the WMC. Their findings are just as important as a Joint Accreditation Review. Their inspection is expected to last up to 45 days. It is unclear whether they will weigh in on the Westchester Medical Center’s outsourcing of valuable services.


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