Hartford, Conn (WTIC Radio)-Advocates and lawmakers expressed concern over the operation of three state hospitals, as the process continues for the three facilities--Manchester, Rockville and Waterbury--to be sold by Prospect Medical Holdings to Yale New Haven Health Systems.
State Senator Saud Anwar (D-South Windsor)and others want Prospect Medical Holdings to leave the state, arguing it's reducing key medical services, while at the same time failing to pay vendors for key services.
Anwar said Prospect sold property to a real estate investment trust that has since instituted high rents that are believed to be unsustainable.
At issue is a certificate of need, the process to sell the hospitals. It has taken a while and because of a gag order very little is known of the sale's status.
Closure of the hospitals would affect 600,000 state residents and place 3-thoudsand jobs at risk.
"Things are moving in the wrong direction very fast," said Sen. Anwar. "There are other hospitals in the country in Pennsylvania and New Jersey where Prospect took entire properties and sold them to real estate investment trusts, which charged unsustainable rents to the hospitals, some of which have been forced to close. Vendors have not been paid, with some services experiencing limitations. It's a gradual process that puts patient care at risk. We are moving in a direction that could leave people without care. The well-being of patients is at the point of being threatened. We have a responsibility as the people who provide hands-on care to state that we stand united and will work closely together with everyone to allow Prospect to leave our state forever."
"These are the people who provide healthcare in my community and I am proud to stand with them today," said Rep. Doucette of the medical workers assembled. "These are the people who have been affected by the current untenable situation with Prospect and the never-ending Certificate of Need application. It's been frustrating for me; I've been taking calls at all levels from concerned employees and patients for many months as the process continues to take so long. The CON process is broken – it should be focused not on the finances of the deal, but rather on what is in the public interest and what can improve the quality of healthcare for our residents. The situation with our hospitals has deteriorated over the last year due to all of the problems with Prospect. The fact is that for-profit private equity has no place in healthcare. The sooner we can get this transaction done, the sooner we can get Prospect Medical out of the state of Connecticut, the better. We need Yale to participate in helping to find a solution. The alternative is unthinkable."
"In a community like the one I represent which includes Rockville, it is a socio-economically distressed community," said Rep. Brown. "It needs the hospital for healthcare services. It's a walkable destination for people in the community seeking care. Additionally, in my opinion, healthcare is a human right. We need to do what we can to help this process along and we need this to happen; I can't imagine where we would be if any of these hospitals were to close. We need to prioritize this and treat it like the emergency it is."
"In my role as President, what I have seen in the last few years is unbelievable," said Dr. Dushyant Gandhi, president of medical staff at Eastern Connecticut Health Network. "To give some examples, patients are contacting me asking if their hospitals are getting closed. Colleagues of mine are not being paid for their services, and we're not talking about late payment – in some instances, there are no payments. I have always enjoyed taking care of patients, but care is under threat due to non-payment, this is a bad situation. We need to be resuscitated as a medical office. Hopefully people in power hear this loud and clear and do what is best for the community we serve."
"The best thing for healthcare in Connecticut is Yale taking over for Prospect," said Dr. David Hill, who is a pulmonary critical care specialist at Waterbury Hospital. "No one who has spoken publicly has spoken against the deal [where Yale acquires these hospitals]. Since that time we have had a security breach and professionals have operated on paper. We have struggled to have supplies, to receive payment for services and to provide care, and I'm surrounded by dedicated professionals who just want to do their jobs, take care of their patients and make sure their communities are safe and well cared for. We cannot continue to operate in this fashion. All we want to do is do our jobs well."
