By ANDY GARDNER

MASSENA -- The Town Council will vote on whether or not to allow Massena Memorial Hospital to privatize at their Dec. 16 meeting, Town Supervisor Joseph Gray anticipates.

He said he thinks MMH should make the transition, but isn’t sure where all four councilmen are at.

“It’s hard to tell. [Councilman] John Macaulay and I have been pretty strong on the fact we need to transition,” Gray said.

The town attorney and hospital officials are now working on phrasing a resolution, he added.

“We need to see a resolution. We’re working on that right now,” according to Gray. “This is really the first step in a process. Should the town board say yes, it sets in motion a whole series of events.”

Even if the town board ratifies a motion to allow MMH’s transition, it still isn’t 100 percent guaranteed.

One of those steps Gray mention is getting a certificate of need from the state Department of Health.

“The Department of Health might say no … There’s a lot of unknowns,” Gray said.

Part of the deal would include the hospital paying back the town for its asset, along with a jobs and service pledge.

“The town needs to be reimbursed for its asset … we’re going to ask for a job guarantee and uninterrupted delivery of medical services,” Gray said. “There’s a lot of details that need to be negotiated.”

At the Nov. 18 town board meeting, MMH CEO Robert Wollebin pledged to maintain at least 345 full-time equivalents for at least three years.

“We will commit for three years that it won’t go below 345 (full-time equivalents),” Wollebin said at the time.

Although MMH has been making money, the razor-thin profits will not give them what they need to expand services, Gray said. In addition to that, they can’t affiliate with other hospitals because of their municipal status, Wollebin said in November.

“If we continue the way we’re doing, we will make small profit but won’t be able to invest in the business and allow it to be competitive. Something has to give,” Gray said. “I think that’s why Wollebin wanted to move now … it could take six months to a year before it will be final.

“It’s what we’ve said from day one. Our goal is to ensure the long-term viability of MMH, whatever it takes.”