I am dismayed by the recent news of the proposal to close University Hospital Brooklyn at Long Island College Hospital (LICH). Less than two years ago I rallied to keep the doors open at LICH after Continuum Health proposed closing this 150 year old neighborhood institution. Disaster was averted once and I stand here today to prevent disaster from striking again.
LICH provides so much to Brooklyn communities including health services to over 11,000 people per year. If LICH closes, what will happen to the 2,500 employees? If LICH closes, where will senior citizens from the Cobble Hill Health Center go when they are in need of emergency care? If LICH closes, where will a young boy go if he breaks his arm while playing in Cobble Hill Park? During this flu season alone, from December 2012 to January 2013, there have been over 1,000 people admitted to the emergency room at LICH.
These are serious questions we must ask before this hospital closure is approved by the board of SUNY Downstate. Otherwise we will face a ripple affect that strains an already overloaded New York City medical services system. I am ready work with my colleagues in government to prevent LICH from closing. There must be an alternative that balances the books at SUNY Downstate and keeps LICH open.
I also urge everyone to sign my petition on Change.org which calls on Chairman H. Carl McCall of the State University of New York to keep University Hospital Brooklyn at Long Island College Hospital open. The petition can be found here.
