Two hospitals in New York are struggling to stay open, but they may file separately for bankruptcy to stay afloat.
Long Beach (N.Y.) Medical Center will likely file for bankruptcy, according to a Long Beach Herald report, as will Lake Shore Health Care Center in Irving, N.Y., according to a WBFO report.
The 162-bed LBMC has been closed since it sustained heavy flooding damage from Hurricane Sandy in October 2012. It also had fiscal and operational issues previously, and the hospital is in negotiations to merge with South Nassau Communities Hospital in Oceanside, N.Y. The New York State Department of Health has supported the merger, and the state also awarded $6.6 million to South Nassau to establish an urgent care center in Long Beach, potentially to replace LBMC.
State Assemblyman Harvey Weisenberg (D-Long Beach) told the Herald LBMC will have to go through bankruptcy eventually because South Nassau does not want to take on the hospital's existing debt. The urgent care center will serve as a stopgap while LBMC goes through bankruptcy. However, no timetable has been set for the process, and the hospital still has not officially filed for bankruptcy.
The 220-bed Lake Shore hospital, part of Lake Erie Regional Health System, announced in October that it would close in January 2014. However, Anthony Borrello, a local businessman, placed a bid to buy the hospital soon thereafter. An attorney for Mr. Borrello said Lake Shore may file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy to stay open and give Mr. Borrello "time to review the hospital's books before buying it and taking it out of bankruptcy," according to the WBFO report.
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