NEW YORK CITY-In yet another reprieve for Long Island College Hospital, Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Johnny Lee Baynes issued two orders on Tuesday that bolstered the cause of supporters to keep the Brooklyn hospital's doors open.
Judge Baynes ruled that t the state's law on hospital closures violated the state constitution. The other ruling handed down by Judge Baynes prevents SUNY Downstate from acting on its closure plan it had submitted earlier this year to state health officials, according to Crain's New York Business.
"The regulations under which hospitals close in New York State have been declared unconstitutional. That's big," said Arnold & Porter partner Jeffrey Ruggiero, who represents the Concerned Physicians of LICH.
Long Island College Hospital owner SUNY Downstate wants to sell or close the hospital, but those efforts have been thwarted in recent court decisions.
A SUNY spokesman charges that keeping LICH open costs at least $15 million a month. “This unsustainable situation jeopardizes our academic mission, patient services at University Hospital, and diverts resources that should be supporting students across New York State,” he said. See story in Crain's New York Busness.
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