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Massena town government, hospital officials to meet with assemblywoman on allowing MMH to affiliate as municipal entity

Posted 7/21/16

By ANDY GARDNER MASSENA -- The Town Council and Massena Memorial Hospital heads will meet with Assemblywoman Addie Russell to discuss legislation she introduced at the end of the last session that …

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Massena town government, hospital officials to meet with assemblywoman on allowing MMH to affiliate as municipal entity

Posted

By ANDY GARDNER

MASSENA -- The Town Council and Massena Memorial Hospital heads will meet with Assemblywoman Addie Russell to discuss legislation she introduced at the end of the last session that would allow MMH to affiliate as a municipal entity.

They are currently in the process of privatizing. MMH CEO Robert Wolleben has said they need to be private in order to affiliate. He told the MMH Board of Managers on Monday they filed a Certificate of Need with the Department of Health, which, if approved, would grant their operating license to a new private entity.

Councilman Samuel Carbone at the Wednesday town meeting said he wants to be sure they have multiple options, instead of just privatizing.

“If you go to a car dealer, do you ask ‘Should I go to another car dealer or should I just take your word?’” Carbone said. “The transfer agreement hasn’t been established. I don’t know how they can apply (for the Certificate of Need) without a transfer agreement.”

Councilman Steve O’Shaughnessy said the draft transfer agreement, which Wolleben said has been passed to the town, isn’t favorable.

“(Town Attorney) Eric Gustafson said it isn’t adequate at all. It’s some generic thing,” O’Shaughnessy said.

Town Supervisor Joseph Gray said the board hasn’t actually had a chance to review it, and he didn’t want to discuss it in public.

“We’ve not seen one, that I know of,” Gray said. “I don’t want to discuss it in public. It’s a contract.”

Wolleben said on Monday that MMH is applying for a $5.8 million grant to take care of their long-term debt, which is contingent upon the hospital affiliating.

“One of the conditions was we had to tell them by the end of the year who we’re going to be affiliated with … they just want us to give them a name,” Wolleben said Monday, adding that the state will demand reimbursement if MMH remains independent.

“They would take $5.8 million back … probably take it from Medicaid reimbursements,” he said that day.