Senate Bill S415

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S415

SPONSOR: THOMAS
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the public authorities law, in relation to membership on
the Nassau health care corporation board

 
PURPOSE GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

Adds experience requirements for voting directors on the Nassau health
care corporation board to ensure the hospital can sufficiently manage
and oversee funds invested into Nassau University Medical Center.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 of the bill amends paragraph (b) of subdivision 1 of section
3402 of the public authorities law to require all voting directors
appointed to the board have experience and knowledge in relevant fields
and a high degree of interest in the corporation.

Section 2 of the bill amends paragraph (a) of subdivision 2 of section
              

3402 of the public authorities law to specify that the board of direc-
tors shall by majority vote designate one of the fifteen voting direc-
tors as the chairperson of the board.

Section 3 of the bill amends subdivision 4 of section 3402 of the public
authorities to specify that the board of directors shall select the
chief executive officer without the approval of the county executive.

Section 4 states the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Nassau Health Care Corporation is a public benefit corporation created
under the public authorities law. Nassau Health Care Corporation
(NuHealth) operates Nassau University Medical Center (NUMC) and the A.
Holly Patterson Extended Care Facility. NUMC is the primary source of
medical care for millions of Nassau County residents and is Long
Island's only public "safety net" hospital. Despite being a crucial
resource that serves hundreds of thousands of patients annually, the
hospital and NuHealth are better known for being staffed by patronage
positions and mishandling funds and federal grant money.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, NUMC was in financial straits. The hospi-
tal's fiscal crisis quickly worsened due to COVID-19. The former chair
stated multiple times that NUMC could not continue operations without
major reductions to services, including staff cutbacks and the sale of
the A. Holly Patterson Extended Care facility to stay afloat.

Due to the federal relief funds from the pandemic, NuHealth and NUMC
found itself the recipients of over $211 million of funds. These funds
included $121 million from the CARES Act, $26 million in advanced Medi-
care reimbursement funds, about $34 million from a state Medicaid
program, DSRIP, and another $30 million of cash on hand to run the
place. Regardless of this influx of funds, the former chair stated that
the fiscal reality for NUMC had not changed.


Despite its troubled history, it is critical to the health and safety of
Long Islanders that NUMC be fully solvent and operational. To that end,
Governor Hochul publicly committed to allocating state resources to
correct the failures that have plagued NUMC in the past.  Additionally,
.Governor Hochul's proposed FY 2023 budget included significant amounts
of money for investment in the state's healthcare systems, including
NUMC.

The increased commitment of government funds and resources to address
NUMC's fiscal situation requires greater state oversight of the NuHealth
board of directors. On top of the funding already committed by the
federal government, NUMC is expecting $25 million in pandemic relief
reimbursement from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA),
according to Senator Chuck Schumer. More funding from the state is also
very likely as the newly formed New York Safety Net Hospital Coalition
lobbies for increased financial support and Medicaid reimbursement
reform.

As the state addresses health inequities and underfunding of safety net
hospitals, like NUMC, it is crucial that there be increased state repre-
sentation on the NuHealth board to prevent future mismanagement of these
funds and grant money and to bring greater stability to the board of
directors. This added oversight and management will help NUMC plan a
fresh path forward.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2021-22: S.8381-B (Thomas) / A.9474-B (Darling) - Passed Senate.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:

None to the state.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.