Today, U.S Senators Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand and Representatives Brian Higgins (D-NY) and Peter King (R-NY) released a letter urging Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Jacob J. Lew to extend an important construction completion deadline for capital and other projects at New York State hospitals and other health facilities, paid for with federal dollars. The construction deadline is currently September 30th of this year, meaning that under current regulations, the projects need to be completed by then, or funding will be cut off . The program through which these 350 projects in NY are being funded is called Federal-State Health Reform Program (F-SHRP). The program provides help to modernize hospitals and create jobs across the state by investing in infrastructure projects. The F-SHRP program’s goals are to promote the efficient operation of the State’s health care system; consolidate and right-size New York’s health care system by reducing excess capacity in the acute care system; shift emphasis in long-term care from institutional-based to community-based settings; expand the adoption of advanced health information technology and improve ambulatory and primary care provision.
In 2006 New York was awarded $2.5 billion for capital improvements at hospitals and health care facilities across New York State, with the stipulation that the projects needed to be completed by September 30th, 2011. Unfortunately, due to bureaucratic red tape at the state and federal level, it took an unexpectedly long time to get the projects underway. Now many projects across the state are in danger of being stopped in their tracks, meaning major job losses, unless the deadline is extended. Projects at St. Francis Hospital in Poughkeepsie, NY; St. Joseph’s Hospital in Syracuse; Bassett Healthcare Network in Little Falls, NY; Oswego Health in Oswego, NY; will be particularly hard hit.
The state of New York has requested an extension, but the Feds have so far not responded.
“This program invests now in projects that create jobs in the short-term and maximizes taxpayer savings in the medium and long-term,” said Schumer. “This aims to give New York the most up to date and cost-effective hospitals so that patients can receive the highest level of care at the lowest possible cost. Putting a halt to these job-creating projects because of an arbitrary deadline, particularly when the hospitals themselves are not at fault, makes no sense.”
“This agreement has resulted in greater oversight and accountability,” said Senator Gillibrand. “It has saved taxpayer money and improved care for millions of New Yorkers. The waiver should absolutely be extended. These are exactly the kind of solutions we need right now. It is common sense.”
“This is a fight to build on the progress underway that is creating quality jobs in the construction and health sectors and delivering enhanced treatment and care to patients across New York,” said Congressman Higgins. “Keeping these federal funds here is critical to the state’s economy and our position as a leader in health care delivery and breakthrough medicine.”
“It is imperative that New York be granted a waiver,” said Congressman King. “This program not only enhances patient care but reduces Medicaid waste, fraud and abuse. Additionally, the failure to secure an extension would shut down shovel-ready projects and cost New Yorkers good jobs.”
Through the F-SHRP program, New York State has been empowered to implement significant reform to the health care system including long-overdue and necessary modernization of the state’s health care infrastructure. Further, F-SHRP has increased access to patient care, while improving the quality of care through the establishment of medical homes. As a condition of the waiver, the state has consistently met annual goals to reduce Medicaid fraud and abuse.
Beginning in 2006 and continuing through 2010, New York State made grant awards of approximately $2.5 billion in state and federal funds to finance more than 470 projects. These awards are providing necessary financial support to help facilities undertake major projects, including developing supportive housing options as alternatives to nursing homes, revamping behavioral health services to better integrate medical and mental health care, and assisting facilities in developing health information technology interfaces to help coordinate care for patients with multiple chronic conditions. Many hospitals also are in the process of using these funds to help finance major projects to improve efficiency and expand access, including developing new primary care clinics and shifting inpatient beds to outpatient space.
While the funds have been committed to all of these worthy and complex projects, final completion of 350 of them may not occur before the September 30th expiration of the F-SHRP program.
The extension would not require additional federal funds, but simply provide the state with authority to use the federal funds already committed under the waiver. In fact, it is expected that full implementation of all F-SHRP programs will result in Medicaid savings to both the state and federal government. An extension of F-SHRP would allow hundreds of reform and restructuring projects to be completed, including job-creating capital projects throughout the state
As the continuation of F-SHRP becomes increasingly uncertain, many facilities in early stages of their projects are reconsidering moving ahead, further endangering the job-creating capital projects and long-term reform that will help build a more efficient and cost-effective health care system.
Schumer, Gillibrand, King, and Higgins were joined on the letter by their colleagues in the New York congressional delegation.
New York ‘F-SHRP’ Program Hospitals
A.O. Fox Memorial Hospital Society, Oneonta |
Montefiore Medical Center, Bronx |
AHRC Health Care, Inc., New York |
Morningside at Home, Inc., Bronx |
Albert Lindley Lee Memorial Hospital c/o Bond, Schoeneck & King, PLLC , Syracuse |
Morningside House Nursing Home Company, Inc., Bronx |
Alice Hyde Medical Center, Malone |
Morris Heights Health Center, Bronx |
Allegany/Western Steuben Rural Health Network, Inc., Wellsville |
Morrisania Diagnostic & Treatment Center, Bronx |
Amber Court @ Suffolk County, LLC, Nesconset |
Mount Sinai Hospital , New York |
Amsterdam Nursing Home Corp., New York |
Mount Sinai Hospital (Project #2 $13.5M), Long Island City |
Anthony L. Jordan Health Center, Rochester |
Mount Sinai Hospital of Queens, Long Island City |
Arnot Ogden Medical Center, Elmira |
Mount Vernon Neighborhood Health Center, Inc., Mount Vernon |
Asian & Pacific Islander Coalition on HIV/AIDS, Inc., New York |
Nassau Health Care Corp., East Meadow |
Aspire of WNY D and T Center, Cheektowaga |
Nassau Health Care Corporation d/b/a the NuHealth System, East Meadow |
Association to Benefit Children, New York |
New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, New York |
Auburn Memorial Hospital, Auburn |
New York City Dept of Health and Mental Hygiene (NYCDOHMH), New York |
Baptist Health Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, Inc., Scotia |
New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation, New York |
Bedford Stuyvesant Family Health Center, Brooklyn |
New York Downtown Hospital, New York |
Bellevue Hospital Center, New York |
New York eHealth Collaborative, New York |
Bertrand Chaffee Hospital, Springville |
New York Ehealth Collaborative, New York |
Betances Health Center, New York |
New York Eye and Ear Infirmary, New York |
Beth Israel Medical Center, New York |
New York Hospital Medical Center of Queens, Flushing |
Bethel Nursing Home, Inc., Ossining |
New York Westchester Square Medical Center, Bronx |
Bon Secours Charity Health System, Suffern |
New York Westchester Square Medical Center c/o Garfunkel, Wild & Travis, P.C., Great Neck |
Bronx Addiction Services Integrated Concept Systems, Inc. (BASICS, INC.), Bronx |
Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center, Niagara Falls |
Bronx RHIO, Bronx |
North Shore University Hospital, Lake Success |
Bronx-Lebanon Hospital Center, Bronx |
North Shore-LIJ Health System, Great Neck |
Bronx-Lebanon Hospital Center, New York |
North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health Care, Inc. , Great Neck |
Brookdale Hospital Medical Center, Brooklyn |
Northeast Health, Inc., Troy |
Brookhaven Memorial Hospital, Patchogue |
Northern Manor Geriatric Center, Inc., Nanuet |
Brookhaven Memorial Hospital Medical Center, Patchogue |
Nyack Hospital, Nyack |
Brookhaven Memorial Hospital Medical Center, Inc., Patchogue |
NYC Dept. of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH), New York |
Brooklyn Health Information Exchange (BHIX), Brooklyn |
NYC Health and Hospitals Corporation – Lincoln Medical and Mental Health Center, Bronx |
Brooklyn Hospital Center, Brooklyn |
NYCHHC – East New York Diagnostic & Treatment Center, Brooklyn |
Brownsville Community Development Corporation, Brooklyn |
NYCHHC – Elmhurst Hospital Center, Elmhurst |
Cabrini Medical Center, New York |
NYCHHC – Queens Hospital Center, Jamaica |
Cabrini Medical Center c/o Garfunkel, Wild & Travis, P.C., Great Neck |
NYCHHC Coler-Goldwater, New York |
Camphill Ghent, Inc., Copake |
NYCHHC Kings County Hospital Center, Brooklyn |
Carthage Area Hospital, Inc., Carthage |
NYCHHC Lincoln Medical and Mental Health Center, New York |
Catholic Health Care System, New York |
NYCHHC-Lincoln, Bronx |
Catholic Health System, Inc., Buffalo |
Oak Orchard Community Health Center, Brockport |
Catskill Hudson Area Health Education Center, Inc., Highland |
ODA Primary Health Care Center, Inc., Brooklyn |
Catskill Regional Medical Center, Harris |
Open Door Family Medical Center, Inc., Ossining |
Center for Disability Services, Albany |
Orleans Community Health, Medina |
Central Assisted Living, LLC, Far Rockaway |
Oswego Hospital, Oswego |
Central Nassau Guidance & Counseling Services, Inc, Hicksville |
Oswego Hospital – Fulton Urgent Care, Oswego |
Central Suffolk Hospital, Patchogue |
Oswego Hospital – Primary Care Network, Oswego |
Central Suffolk Hospital dba Peconic Bay Medical Center, Riverhead |
Otsego County, Cooperstown |
Champlain Valley Physicians Hospital Medical, Plattsburgh |
Our Lady of Lourdes Memorial Hospital, Inc., Binghamton |
Champlain Valley Physicians Hospital Medical Center, Plattsburgh |
Our Lady of Lourdes Memorial Hospital, Inc. (Lourdes Hospital), Binghamton |
Charles B. Wang Community Health Center, New York |
P2 Collaborative of Western New York, Inc., Williamsville |
Charles B. Wang Community Health Center, Inc., Flushing |
Parker Jewish Institute of Health Care and Rehabilitation, New York |
Chautauqua County Health Network, Jamestown |
Perry Avenue Family Medical Center, Inc., Bronx |
Chenango Health Network, Norwich |
Pine Valley Center, LLC d/b/a Pine Valley Center for Rehabilitation & Nursing, Spring Valley |
Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center, Ogdensburg |
Planned Parenthood of Western New York (PPWNY), Buffalo |
CNYHS, East Syracuse |
Premier Health Care, New York |
Cobble Hill Health Center, Brooklyn |
Presbyterian Home for Central New York, Inc., New Hartford |
Columbia County Community Healthcare Consortium, Inc., Hudson |
Queens Hospital Center, Jamaica |
Columbia Memorial Hospital, Hudson |
Richmond Medical Center dba Richmond University Medical Center, Staten Island |
Columbia University Health Care, Inc., New York |
Richmond University Medical Center, Staten Island |
Community General Hospital, Syracuse |
Rivington House Health Care Facility and Mapplethorpe Residential Treatment Facility, New York |
Community Health Care Association of New York State, New York |
Rochester General Hospital, Rochester |
Community Health Center of Buffalo, Inc. (CHCB), Buffalo |
Rochester General Long Term Care, Inc. d/b/a Hill Haven Nursing Home, Webster |
Community Health Center of Richmond, Inc., Staten Island |
Rockland County Department of Health, Pomona |
Community Health Project, Inc. d/b/a Callen-Lorde Community Health Center, New York |
Rutland Nursing Home, Brooklyn |
Community Health Project, Inc. d/b/a Michael Callen – Audre Lorde Community Health Center, New York |
Ryan/Chelsea-Clinton Community Health Center, New York |
Community Healthcare Network, New York |
Ryan-Nena Community Health Center, New York |
Community Memorial Hospital, Hamilton |
Saint Francis Health Care Foundation, Inc., Poughkeepsie |
Coney Island Hospital, New York |
Saint John’s Riverside Hospital, Yonkers |
County of Lewis, Lowville |
Samaritan Hospital of Troy New York, Troy |
County of Schenectady – Glendale Home, Scotia |
Samaritan Hospital of Troy, New York, Troy |
Crestwood Health Care Center, Inc., Niagara |
Samaritan Medical Center, Watertown |
Cumberland Diagnostic and Treatment Center North Brooklyn Health Network, Brooklyn |
Samaritan Medical Center for Watertown Nursing Home, Watertown |
Damian Family Care Center, Briarwood |
San Simeon by the Sound Center for Nursing and Rehabilitation, Inc., Greenport |
Damian Family Care Centers, Inc. (Project Samaritan Health Services, Inc.), Briarwood |
Schenectady Family Health Services, Inc., dba Hometown Health Centers, Schenectady |
Daughters of Jacob Nursing Home Company, Inc., Bronx |
Schnurmacher Center for Rehabilitation and Nursing, White Plains |
DMN Management Services, LLC d/b/a Capital Living and Rehabilitation Centres (The Avenue), Schenectady |
Sea View Hospital Rehabilitation Center & Home, Staten Island |
Dolan Family Health Center, Greenlawn |
Seton Health, Troy |
East Hill Family Medical, Inc., Auburn |
Sisters of Charity Hospital, Buffalo |
Eastern Niagara Hospital (formerly Lockport Memorial Hospital), Lockport |
Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hospital, Penn Yan |
Eastman Dental Center , Rochester |
Sound Shore Medical Center of Westchester, New Rochelle |
Ellis Hospital, Schenectady |
Sound Shore Medical Center of Westchester, New Rochelle |
Ellis Hospital- St. Clare’s takeover, Schenectady |
South Nassau Communities Hospital, Oceanside |
Erie County Medical Center Corporation (ECMCC), Buffalo |
Southern Tier Link, Binghamton |
Family Health Network of Central New York, Inc., Cortland |
St. Ann’s of Greater Rochester Inc., Rochester |
Family Services of Chemung County Inc., Elmira |
St. Barnabas Hospital, Bronx |
Faxton-St. Luke’s Healthcare, Utica |
St. Clare’s Hospital- Closure, Schenectady |
Federation Employment and Guidance Service, Inc. (FEGS), New York |
St. Francis Geriatric and Healthcare Services, Buffalo |
Finger Lakes Health Systems Agency, Rochester |
St. Francis Hospital and Health Centers c/o St. Francis Healthcare Foundation, Inc., Roslyn |
Finger Lakes Migrant Health Care Project, Inc., Penn Yan |
St. John’s Episcopal Hospital, South Shore (SJEH), Far Rockaway |
Flushing Hospital and Medical Center, Flushing |
St. Joseph’s Hospital, Elmira |
Flushing Hospital Medical Center, Flushing |
St. Joseph’s Hospital Health Center, Syracuse |
Folts Homes Inc., Herkimer |
St. Joseph’s Hospital Yonkers, Yonkers |
Forest Hills Hospital, Forest Hills |
St. Luke Residential Health Care Facility Inc., Oswego |
Forest Hills Hospital , Forest Hills |
St. Luke’s Cornwall Hospital, Newburgh |
Fort Drum Regional Health Planning Organization, Watertown |
St. Margaret’s House and Hospital for Babies, Inc., Albany |
Glens Falls Hospital, Glens Falls |
St. Vincent de Paul Residence, Bronx |
Goldwater Specialty Hospital Nursing Facility , New York |
Stamford Health Care Society, Inc., Stamford |
Good Samaritan Hospital Medical Center, West Islip |
Stony Brook University Hospital, East Setauket |
Good Samaritan Nursing Home , West Islip |
Stony Brook University Hospital, Stony Brook |
Greater Harlem Nursing Home Co., Inc., New York |
Suffolk County Department of Health Services, Hauppauge |
Greater Rochester Independent Practice Assn (GRIPA), Rochester |
Sunset Park Health Council, Brooklyn |
Greater Rochester RHIO, Rochester |
SUNY @ Stony Brook School of Dental Medicine Dental Care Center, Stony Brook |
Health Information Exchange of New York (HIXNY), Clifton Park |
SUNY Downstate Medical Center / University Hospital of Brooklyn, Brooklyn |
Health Information Technology Alliance of Syracuse (HITAS), Syracuse |
SVCMC-St. Vincent’s Hospital Staten Island (Richmond University Medical), Staten Island |
Health Information Technology Evaluation Collaborative (HITEC), New York |
Syracuse Community Health Center, Inc., Syracuse |
HealtheLink, Buffalo |
Terence Cardinal Cooke Health Care Center , New York |
Healthy Capital District Initiative, Albany |
The Brooklyn Hospital Center, Brooklyn |
Heathwood Health Care Center, Inc., Williamsville |
The Brooklyn Hospital Center (TBHC), Brooklyn |
HHC/Queens Hospital Center, Jamaica |
The Center for Discovery, Monticello |
HITEC, New York |
The Children’s Aid Society , New York |
Home for the Aged of the Little Sisters of the Poor, Queens Village |
The Gerry Homes, Jamestown |
Home of the Good Shepherd, Saratoga Springs |
The Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale, Bronx |
Horizon Health Services, Inc., Buffalo |
The John T. Mather Memorial Hospital of Port Jefferson NY, Inc., Port Jefferson |
Housing Works, Inc., Brooklyn |
The McGuire Group Healthcare Facilities LLC, Buffalo |
Hudson Headwaters Health Network, Queensbury |
The New York and Presbyterian Hospital, New York |
Hudson River Healthcare, Peekskill |
The New York and Presbyterian Hospital, White Plains |
Hudson River HealthCare, Inc., Peekskill |
The New York Presbyterian Hospital, New York |
Hudson River Healthcare, Inc., Peekskill |
The Research Foundation of State University of New York, Rensselaer |
ICD-International Center for the Disabled, New York |
The Research Foundation of State University of New York, Brooklyn |
Institute for Community Living, New York |
The Rosa Coplon Jewish Home & Infirmary, Inc., Getzville |
Institute for Family Health, New York |
The Westchester Institute for Human Development, Valhalla |
Institute for Family Health , New York |
The Woman’s Christian Association of Jamestown, N.Y. (WCA Hospital), Jamestown |
Interboro RHIO, Elmhurst |
The Zucker Hillside Hospital, Great Neck |
Interfaith Medical Center, Brooklyn |
THINC RHIO, Fishkill |
IPRO, Lake Success |
THINC RHIO Inc, Fishkill |
Ira Davenport Memorial Hospital, Inc., Bath |
THINC RHIO, Inc., Fishkill |
Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, Jamaica |
Tioga Health Care Center, LLC, Williamsville |
Jamaica Hospital Medical Center D &TC, Jamaica |
TLC Health Network, Gowanda |
Jefferson County Public Health Service, Watertown |
TLC Health Network, Irving |
Jewish Board of Family & Children’s Services, Inc., New York |
Tri-County Family Medicine Program, Inc., Dansville |
Jewish Home Lifecare, Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Campus, Bronx, Bronx |
UB Associates, Inc., Buffalo |
Joseph P. Addabbo, Arverne |
United Health Services Hospitals, Johnson City |
Judith Lynn Home for Adults, LLC, Bronx |
United Hebrew Geriatric Center, New Rochelle |
Kaleida Health – Gates-Deaconess, Buffalo |
United Hospital Fund, New York |
Kaleida Health – MFG, Buffalo |
United Memorial Medical Center, Batavia |
Kingsbrook Healthcare System, Inc. , Brooklyn |
Unity Hospital, Rochester |
Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center, Brooklyn |
University Hospital of the State of New York, Upstate Medical Center, Syracuse |
Lake Erie Regional Health System/TLC Health Network, Irving |
University of Rochester (Golisano Children’s Hospital), Rochester |
Lenox Hill Hospital, New York |
Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood, Albany |
Lincoln Medical & Mental Health Center NYC HHC, Bronx |
Upper Hudson Primary Care Consortium Inc, Glens Falls |
LIPIX, Inc. (Long Island Patient Information Exchange), Manhasset |
Valentine Lane Family Practice, Yonkers |
Little Falls Hospital, Little Falls |
Valley Health Services, Inc., Herkimer |
Long Beach Medical Center, Long Beach |
Valley View Center for Nursing Care & Rehabilitation, Goshen |
Long Island College Hospital, New York |
Victory Memorial Hospital, Brooklyn |
Long Island Jewish Medical Center, Great Neck |
Village Center for Care, New York |
Long Island Patient Information Exchange (LIPIX), Manhasset |
Visiting Nurse Service of New York, New York |
Loretto Health & Rehabilitation, Syracuse |
Vocational Instruction Project Community Services, Inc., Bronx |
Lutheran Housing Reality, Inc., Jamestown |
Wartburg Home of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, Mount Vernon |
Lutheran Medical Center, Brooklyn |
Weill Cornell Medical School – Health Information Technology Evaluation Collaborative, New York |
Lutheran Retirement Home, Jamestown |
Westchester County Health Care Corporation, Valhalla |
Maimonides Medical Center, Brooklyn |
Western New York Clinical Information Exchange (WNYCIE), Buffalo |
Mary Imogene Bassett Hospital, Cooperstown |
Western New York Clinical Information Exchange, Inc. dba HealtheLink, Buffalo |
Medina Memorial Health Care System, Medina |
Westfield Memorial Hospital, Westfield |
Menorah Campus Adult Home, Inc., Getzville |
Westside Health Services, Inc., Rochester |
Mercy Hospital of Buffalo, Buffalo |
Woodhull Medical and Mental Health Center, Brooklyn |
Metropolitan Hospital Center, New York |
Woodhull Medical and Mental Health Center/North Brooklyn Health Network, Brooklyn |
MJG Nursing Home, Inc., Brooklyn |
Wyckoff Heights Medical Center, Brooklyn |
Mohawk Valley Network, Inc., Utica |
Wyoming County, Warsaw |
Monroe County Department of Public Health, Rochester |
Wyoming County Community Hospital, Warsaw |
The members’ letter to Secretary Sebelius and Director Lew can be seen below:
January 14, 2011
The Honorable Kathleen Sebelius The Honorable Jacob J. Lew Secretary Director U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Management and Budget 200 Independence Avenue, SW 1650 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20101 Washington, DC 20503
Dear Secretary Sebelius and Director Lew:
We urge you to swiftly review and approve New York State’s request for a three-year extension of the Federal-State Health Reform Partnership (F-SHRP) waiver under Section 1115 (e) of the Social Security Act. The five-year term of the F-SHRP waiver is due to expire on September 30, 2011. The New York State Department of Health (DOH), on behalf of the state, requested this extension on September 30, 2010.
The extension would not require additional federal funds, but simply provide the state with authority to use the federal funds already committed under the waiver. In fact, it is expected that full implementation of all F-SHRP programs will result in Medicaid savings to both the state and federal government. An extension of F-SHRP would allow hundreds of reform and restructuring projects to be completed, including job-creating capital projects throughout the state.
Through the F-SHRP waiver, New York State has been empowered to implement significant reform to the health care system including long-overdue and necessary modernization of the state’s health care infrastructure. Further, F-SHRP has increased access to patient care, while improving the quality of care through the establishment of medical homes. As a condition of the waiver, the state has consistently met annual goals to reduce Medicaid fraud and abuse.
Beginning in 2006 and continuing through 2010, New York State made grant awards of approximately $2.5 billion in state and federal funds to finance more than 470 projects. These awards are providing necessary financial support to help facilities undertake major projects, including developing supportive housing options as alternatives to nursing homes, revamping behavioral health services to better integrate medical and mental health care, and assisting facilities in developing health information technology interfaces to help coordinate care for patients with multiple chronic conditions. Many hospitals also are in the process of using these funds to help finance major projects to improve efficiency and expand access, including developing new primary care clinics and shifting inpatient beds to outpatient space.
While the funds have been committed to all of these worthy and complex projects, final completion of 350 of them may not occur before the current expiration of the F-SHRP waiver.
Facilities that responded in good faith to the federal and state calls for reform will need additional time to carry out these transformations. The procedures put in place to establish and oversee numerous grant programs, some of which require institutions to clear additional administrative conditions, help ensure the integrity of each awardee’s application, yet require a generous timeline.
As the continuation of F-SHRP becomes increasingly uncertain, many facilities in early stages of their projects are reconsidering moving ahead, further endangering the job-creating capital projects and long-term reform that will help build a more efficient and cost-effective health care system.
We believe New York State’s request for an F-SHRP extension is imperative and should be reviewed and approved expeditiously. We look forward to working with you on this issue.