Brooklyn -- Today, State Senator Daniel Squadron released the following statement upon Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Carolyn Demarest's ruling to vacate the 2011 order that approved the State University of New York (SUNY) as the operator of Long Island College Hospital (LICH):

"For months, we've fought to keep LICH open for care as SUNY tried to sell it off for parts. 

"LICH is vital to Brooklyn and simply cannot be turned into a massive real estate deal that would leave patients in our community and around Brooklyn without the health care they need.

"Today's ruling is further confirmation that we must keep LICH open until a new operator is in place. 

"There are solutions to preserve LICH and they must not be left on the table. This ruling provides an opportunity to reach a solution and prevent SUNY from simultaneously shutting down vital services. I look forward to working with the community and all stakeholders to do so."

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