By Carrie James
The tentative spending plan called for staffing reductions to help fill the multi-million-dollar operating deficits the health-care provider continues to rack up.
The $469-million budget received a 7-4 vote, which according to the board's attorney, was one vote shy of passing. Other facilities that the corporation operates include the A. Holly Patterson Extended Care Facility in Uniondale and seven clinics throughout the county.
Critics of the proposed budget, which included board members Ronald Brinn, Rita Wallace and Mitchell Sahn, fought most of their two-hour discussion over the plan to convince fellow trustees to consider options other than staffing cuts and to hold off on a vote for 30 days.
"I want to table the motion," said Brinn, a relatively new member of the board, which still has two vacant seats. "That gives us 30 days to craft a budget that really works. My focus right away is to look at areas that involve outside contracts. I have concerns about the high cost of outside services. In a budget of $400 million, surely we could have found 10 percent, or $40 million, in contract costs that could be cut. Why can't we use the high volume of work force to perform some of the services we contract out for?"
Co-board member Rita Wallace threw out the possibility of levying taxes within Nassau County to offset costs at the hospital. Assemblywoman Earlene Hooper (D-Hempstead) said at the budget hearing that she would bring the measure before the state Legislature.
Another problem with the budget discussion was that some board members thought they didn't have the necessary information to make an educated vote, Sahn said. He also motioned to postpone the vote so that he could get more information and talk with others about its implications.
"It's vital for us to take a look at all the information before making that vote," he said. "This is about a comprehensive look at what we can do better. We need to review all the contracts; we need to continue to push forward."
Even with a budget well over $400 million, corporation Chief Executive Officer Richard Turan called the proposed 2002 spending plan a bare-bones budget and said that he and fellow administrators scoured the spending plan for cuts before turning to layoffs.
Before budget discussions started this year, Chief Financial Officer Gary Bie said the hospital, clinics and extended-care facility would have faced a $75-million deficit at the end of 2002. The hospital already must repay bonds totaling more than $250 million, which the county will be responsible for if the corporation fails.
Through planning, Bie said, the administration cut roughly $58 million, bringing the deficit down to a more tolerable $17 million. Of the $58 million, 60 percent, or $30 million, is related to cut expenses, while the remaining $28 million is related to labor and fringe benefits. The corporation included in the budget a $23-million savings because about 400 to 500 employees would be laid off, which was at the center of the hectic meeting Monday.
No one on the board or in the administration said they wanted to cut staff, but Turan said he would do whatever was needed to save the hospital from closing. Board Chairwoman Marilyn Robertson concurred, saying that layoffs were a last resort.
"During this budget process, [the budget committee] listened to staff and tried to find ways to cut expenses," Robertson said. "Reduction of staff will not even be considered unless the tightening of expenses is at a maximum."
Turan said layoffs would not have happened for 30 days had the budget been approved, giving the administration more time to negotiate with the union, Civil Service Employees Association Local 830, to find other ways to cut expenses.
Union President Tony Giustino said he thought the meeting had brought some progress, and he hopes the time until the Dec. 17 meeting would be used to recoup lost revenues, seek other expense cuts and avoid layoffs.
"We'll be there fighting with you," he said. "It's easy to say the budget is a living document, put the layoffs in there and take them out later. But it's not so easy when you are on that list or don't know if you are on that list."
Also, some staff and members of the public said they had problems with the corporation operating under a minimal budget because patient care could be compromised.
"I fear that a cut in medical staff will affect the quality of care," said Laurie Farber, who uses hospital services regularly. "Cuts in support staff may mean that many areas of the hospital are not kept clean - a hard enough task under good circumstances."
Those who cheered the vote said they hope the board and administration would take the time to reevaluate the budget and come up with solutions other than staffing cuts. Those who wanted it to pass said they too would continue to look at options, but if no new revenues were found by Dec. 17, the budget would be re-introduced as it now stands.
"We're interested in working with the union, state, federal and county officials to seek additional revenues, but if we can't come up with other revenue sources, we will present the same budget in December," said Shelley Lotenberg, hospital spokeswoman.
