SUNY Downstate Loses Control of LIC Hospital

NEW YORK CITY-While its impact may not be known until a court hearing on Thursday, Supreme Court Judge Carolyn Demarest issued an order that wrestles control of the financially strapped Long Island College Hospital from SUNY Downstate.

Whether the hospital can be saved from closure is uncertain. The ruling was a reversal of a decision the judge rendered in May 2011 that put Brooklyn-based Long Island College Hospital under the direction of SUNY. At that time, she approved the transfer of LICH's assets to SUNY from Continuum Health Partners. Those assets now revert back to Long Island College Hospital, according to Crain's New York Business.

Judge Demarest was highly critical of SUNY Downstate's oversight of the hospital. "I have a legal and moral responsibility to correct my earlier error," she wrote in her ruling. She added that SUNY knew of the hospital's losses, but promised when it took over the institution to keep it open. Now, SUNY has been advocating it be closed. Judge Demarest said that SUNY has “breached its contractual obligations.”

"The facts are that when SUNY acquired Long Island College Hospital, it was done with the best of intentions: save a hospital that was on the verge of closure, grow the struggling Downstate enterprise as a strategy to survive, and provide additional clinical training opportunities for our students," stated SUNY Downstate officials. "SUNY has poured millions of dollars into LICH in an attempt to reverse nearly two decades of financial losses. Unfortunately, SUNY and LICH became victims of the daunting realities of Brooklyn's health care delivery landscape. We are disappointed it did not work, but it was not for lack of effort." See story in Crain's New York Business.