In a decision that came down to the wire, New York City-based Mount Sinai's Beth Israel hospital will not close July 12 as initially planned. Along with legal challenges, the health system is waiting on the New York State Department of Health's approval for its revised closure plan.
The hospital's closure date now depends on state and legal decisions, but "the urgency and need to close has never been greater," a spokesperson for Mount Sinai said in a July 10 statement shared with Becker's.
Mount Sinai submitted an initial closure plan to the health department in October, with a planned closure date of July 12.
The health system then submitted a revised July 12 closure plan after the health department shared that the original plan was incomplete. The revised plan included additional information regarding the hospital's engagement with local leaders and other partner hospitals, the hospital's patient volume and clinical services, and its finances.
"We chose that specific day because it was the furthest date we believed we could reliably keep the hospital open safely," Brendan Carr, MD, CEO of Mount Sinai, and Elizabeth Sellman, president and COO of Mount Sinai Beth Israel, said in a July 10 internal memo shared with Becker's. "We will, of course, not commence the closure process without approval by the state and until the legal hurdles are cleared, but there is urgency as there are risks associated with keeping the hospital open beyond the proposed date."
Dr. Carr and Ms. Sellman detailed their staffing challenges at the hospital since Mount Sinai shared plans to close, with around 450 employees leaving at their own accord. While the health system has worked to recruit and hire additional staff, the efforts have fallen short.
The memo also addressed a lawsuit that was filed against both the health department and Mount Sinai to keep the hospital open.
"We continue to work collaboratively with the DOH on our safe closure plan," the memo said. "Similarly, the DOH and Mount Sinai have each filed motions to dismiss the legal case. We hope the litigation will be resolved soon and the closure plan approved. But until then we will continue to do our best to maintain and restore services at the hospital."
In a statement shared with Becker's, New York City Council member Carlina Rivera called the postponed closure a "relief" but shared concerns over the future of long-term care for patients in the area.
"I remain firm in my position that the closure of Beth Israel would have devastating consequences and that mitigations proposed by Mount Sinai remain wholly insufficient to support residents in maintaining their health and well-being," Ms. Rivera said. "It will take years for existing alternative healthcare providers to scale up their infrastructure to meet the demand that will be placed on them, and the state must intervene to halt Mount Sinai’s hasty efforts to close the hospital down."
The health department declined to provide Becker's with a comment, saying the closure plan is still under review.