Long Island College Hospital Faces Potential Shutdown

By on January 24, 2013 9:42 am in Brooklyn Heights, Cobble Hill, Education, Government, Health, News

The Long Island College Hospital in Cobble Hill is facing potential closure as it continues to lose money for owner State University of New York. According to stories in The New York Times and New York Daily News, the 150-year-old facility at 339 Hicks Street is on the table with State University trustees.

But a joint statement from Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, U.S. Rep. Nydia Velazquez, state Sen. Daniel Squadron, state Assemblywoman Joan Millman and City Councilmen Brad Lander and Steve Levin insists: “Any discussion of closure is unwarranted, premature and simply not acceptable. We stand ready to work together on a plan that preserves SUNY Downstate and its affiliated campuses… together.”

More on the Cobble Hill Blog. (Photo: NY Daily News)

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  • Gerry

    We avoid LICH.
    Each of our children was born in Manhasset at North Shore/LIJ Health Care System.

  • Rick

    So I take it you’d ask the ambulance take you to all the way to Manhasset if you ever have a hear attack, when minutes matter?

  • Boerum Billy

    LICH was always there when we had an emergency. This is disturbing!

  • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UlsiLOnWCoI Arch Stanton

    I thought when SUNY took over LICH they claimed they were committed to getting back on track. They must have known what they were getting into… Why not try to turn it around, instead of giving up so soon?

  • MonroeOrange

    What you fail to comprehend Gerry is exactly what Rick said…when its a matter of minutes, which most emergencies are, you need to get to a hospital as fast as possible. This impacts people when they CAN’T avoid LICH, not when one has the luxury of getting in a car and driving out to long island or even midtown manhattan.

    Though, I could certainly see you complaining to the ambulance driver about LICH while they are taking you there if you were having an emergency. “Ummm… driver, please don’t take me to that ‘crummy, dumpy’ hospital, lets go to Long Island.”

  • Topham Beauclerk

    Who on earth would choose to be born in Manhasset?

  • Gerry

    The medical community here in Brooklyn is lacking we avoid it at all costs. LICH is a dump. Not long ago Actress “Sista Soul-Ja” sued LICH for being profiled as a single mother in the maternity ward when she gave birth to her son. North Shore/LIJ is an excellent hospital. Winthrop University Hospital in Mineola is another great one. Lenox Hill, Columbia Presb., etc. so many great hospitals no need for LICH.

  • GHB

    In case of an emergency, I wouldn’t be surprised if your ambulance driver would agree to take you to Manhasset. Just because.

  • Gerry

    @ Topham B – Every family we know here in Brooklyn Heights chose to deliver babies in Manhasset at North Shore/LIJ. LICH has a BIG public relations problem here in Brooklyn Heights among upscale white people with comprehensive health benefits – and do not shoot the messenger!

  • Gerry

    @ Rick, I hate emergencies, I hate surprises and avoid both at all costs work here to keep it all steady and routine. I hope that we never end up in an emergency room at any hospital in Brooklyn. NYU is another great hospital a FAST trip up the FDR Drive from Brooklyn Heights.

  • Michael Kessel

    It would be an utter disaster to close this hospital

  • Sam

    LICH is the best hospital in Brooklyn You get seen much quickly in LICH ER then any other hospital. It must not be allowed to close

  • Rick

    While it is true that there are better hospitals in NYC, LICH is vital to our community.

    Gerry’s suggestion of driving to NYU is fine, providing that one remembers not to schedule their heart attack during rush hour or during repair work on the bridge…

  • al

    LICH as an emergency center has a certain utility but fact is, if the inpatient services aren’t used by the residents of bk heights (in the hospitals current state quite understandable) then the hospital is never going to be a financially feasible enterprise… it’s sad to say but the people with comprehensive health care are the only source of financial stability and LICH will not attract those people without significant investment!

  • Boerum Billy

    Okay, is this a comment or a reaction?!
    Stupid Disqus!

  • Gerry

    @ Al – you said it like I did the insured go elsewhere and not to LICH. I wish that LICH was a better hospital regretfully its reputation stinks. If a family member of mine did land in the LICH ER as soon as that person was stable I would move them elsewhere and there go my insurance benefits claims out the door with me monies LICH needs to operate. Medicaid cuts result in big loses for hospitals not long ago a Medicaid number was a gold card. It had been Continum Health Partners that pulled LICH down made it into the dump it is today. In Manhattan, Nassau County, Yale New Haven Medical Center, etc. etc. so many choices here in NYC for healthcare. that LICH has not a chance

  • Jazz

    A comment. A reaction is via Twitter or other social platforms. Duh.

  • Topham Beauclerk

    @disqus_GPPJ46KcJ7:disqus

    Every family you know? You and I obviously move in very different circles. If being born in a Brooklyn hospital is considered infra dig, why not go to Manhattan? There’s no cachet, darling, in being born in Manhasset; on the contrary.

  • MonroeOrange

    Gerry…I’ve lived in BH for my whole life, and haven’t met one person who was born in or had a family member born in manhasset….everyone i know was born in manhattan or somewhere in brooklyn.

  • Gerry

    @ Rick – it is highly unlikely that I will have a heart attack not going to happen

  • lois

    I was in the LICH emergency room in August and received excellent attention and care – better than I have ever received in a “suburban hospital” – my husband has been in the Dr. John Edson Cardiac Care Unit many times and also received good care. It would be sad to see this hospital close.

  • Andrew Porter

    From your mouth to God’s ear? Highly unlikely.

  • Andrew Porter

    Ooh, empty real estate! Great views over the harbor, close to shopping and restaurants. That sound you hear is the real estate companies on Montague licking their chops…

  • Gerry

    @ Topham B – yes we move in different circles. We had all 3 of our children at North Shore/LIJ. Last year before baby was born near the due date I booked a suite at the Roslyn Claremont Hotel so we could get to the hospital FAST and we did. We love our new baby so much he had been born in Manhasset thats a fact.

  • Gerry

    @ yall — not long ago Rapper Sista Soulja had sued LICH because they profiled her as being a single mother. The LICH materninty ward had just assumed that she had no husband because of her race. Racist maternity ward nurses at LICH so we went to Manhasset. We wanted no part of those antisemetic bigot racist maternity ward nurses. We love North Shore/LIJ in Manhasset. they treated my wife and I very well.

  • William Spier

    Andrew, Arch, your sarcasm is surely in order for this onw:

    For a smallish hospital,LICH has one of the best fetal/maternal medicine departments in the City. I know that the local pseudo elitists love to say that they had their kids at Lenox Hill, but that is just so much nonsense. Also, It seems that folks in Cobble Hill and the South Heights are not in need of good emergency medical services and other services a hospital can give better than the doctor’s office. What will they tell the ambulance driver when the end up prone in the back ambulance, “take me to NYC or Presbyterian.” ????

    Now, the real reason LICH is on the hatchet block is mostly politics: If the blog wants to get into real journalism, look into the Guvs buddy Jeffrey Sachs. His consulting business has clients such as Brooklyn Hospital Center, I think Maimonides too, and another hospital that would like to see LICH sink.

    I think that SUNY Downstate is not costing the State as much as DiNapoli says. I think the audit and purge at SUNY Downstate was a power grab to get SUNY Downstate weakened and hence less quality competing hospitals get more business. That is why the Downstatee purge happened in November.

    I also say this to the local folk, do you know how many elderly people living in Cadman Plaza may not survive the trip to Lutheran or that disastrous emergency room at BHC?

    Finally, the value of LICH real estate, that is– what was left after Continuum sold most off, may very well be in the sites of the Board of Downstate, who may very well be packed soon with the likes of Sachs and the Guvs political hacks.

    Embarassing.

  • http://twitter.com/homerfink Homer Fink

    Bill great to see you back commenting. – Homer