Major NYC Hospital Plans To Downsize

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Mount Sinai/Beth Israel has announced in the face of losses amounting to "hundreds of millions" it will undergo a downsizing that will reduce inpatient bed capacity.

We have been informed by management that they will be announcing the downsizing of Beth Israel within the next week or two. Their plan is to move units and individuals throughout the system,” NYSNA officials wrote in the email sent Friday afternoon that began, Urgent message!”

"NYSNA said in the message that it had entered into discussions with the health care union 1199 SEIU Healthcare Workers East and would protect members' job security, mobility and parity of benefits.”

Facing huge losses, Mount Sinai Beth Israel to downsize | Crain's New York Business

This comes six years after Saint Vincent's Medical Center across town in the West Village filed for bankruptcy and shut down. That property is now luxury condo housing.

NYC is the land of the rich, not the working and middle class. Even California cities do not have such bad disparities between classes.

NYC is the land of the rich not the working and middle class. Even California cities do not have such bad disparities between classes.[/quote']

According to published reports, over fifty percent of Beth Israel's patients are either uninsured or on Medicaid. Those are the kinds of numbers that helped sink Saint Vincent's and IIRC LICH among other NYC closed places as well. It explains why BI was losing vast sums of money for the past several years (again according to published reports).

Many of these places were in distress before Obamacare launched a series of cuts to reimbursement rates, the passing of that scheme into law is bringing out the rash from a long untreated disease. Neither NYC nor NYS has the money nor belly for propping up financially unstable hospitals any more. The fact Saint Vincent's was "allowed" to close released forces the City is still grappling with today.

Long story short wealthy and or those with "good" insurance increasingly choose the university/medical school connected big healthcare systems; NYP, NYU-Langone, North Shore-LIJ, Mount Sinai (Upper East Side campus at least). This coupled with the changing nature of healthcare delivery (increased focus on keeping persons out of hospitals/ more outpatient/community care), means many of these big barns of hospitals built ages ago for a different healthcare model are becoming obsolete.

Sadly for many the booming NYC real estate market means places are sitting on gold mines. The Rudin family is making a fortune on the "Greenwich Lane" condo complex that replaced Saint Vincent's. Same is likely to play out with whatever Fortis and NYU have planed for the old LICH campus. Mount Sinai has stated in published reports they will finance the closing/redevelopment of Beth Israel with cash, not debt. That should be very easy as they are selling off prime (soon to be or already are) vacant lots. Something quite rare in Manhattan these days.

Mount Sinai CEO says 'no layoffs' in the rebirth of Beth Israel - Modern Healthcare Modern Healthcare business news, research, data and events

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