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Suffolk County’s Foley Nursing Home Future Uncertain

by Spencer Rumsey on March 17, 2011

Indeed, when the legislature approved a bipartisan measure to spend more than $33 million ($54 million today, adjusted for inflation, according to the Suffolk Budget Review Office) building a new facility in 1991, Levy, then a Democratic legislator, voted against it. Foley said his dad had told him and his sisters that he only “wanted his name to be continually associated with outstanding public health care as opposed to a privatized scheme that would diminish the level of care and service to those the facility is supposed to protect.”

Levy, who became a Republican in 2010, isn’t the first county executive to have the nursing home in his sights. Pat Halpin, a Democrat, had tried do the same in 1989.

Haplin tells the Press he wanted to sell it to a not-for-profit. The county was losing about $10 million a year, and the old WPA facility had been cited by the state Department of Health for “numerous violations.” He believes that “government does have a role but it’s not the role of county government…. The threshold question is: Can these services be provided by someone other than Suffolk County? And the answer is yes.”

Halpin, who’s disagreed with Levy over the years, says, “I have to give him credit for his determination to see this through given all of the other county obligations that only the county can provide.”

But a philosophical difference in the role of government runs deep.

“People in the private world think that Foley is overstaffed,” says Sabatino, “and health-care advocates think private facilities are understaffed. The guys in the private sector are going to provide you with the bare minimum. The county’s Foley facility provided you with what it took to get the job done.”

Another distinction, Sabatino notes, is that there’s more oversight with the county-operated facility.

“There’s always the fear that the politicians are going to hold hearings,” Sabatino tells the Press. “But you don’t get that with a private facility.”

Kenneth Rozenberg, the nursing home mogul, tried to dispel any concerns that the Suffolk legislators might have had about the sale when he appeared before the legislature last June.

“We are very proud of our record of high-quality patient care, as well as high staff morale. We consider ourselves on the cutting edge of providing for our residents,” Rozenberg told the legislators. “We look at the needs of the community, speak to the surrounding hospitals, and develop a plan of success for each facility. No two facilities are the same, and therefore, no two facilities are treated the same.”

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1199SEIU United Healthcare WorkersAnton BorovinaBill LindsayBishop Francis J. Mugavero Center for Geriatric CareBrian FoleyBrookhavenCharles “Peaches” CameronCheryl FeliceChris BarnesCover StoryCrain’s New York BusinessEd Romainefeaturedfeatured-scrollGeorge Barneshealth careJeanne MelnikJohn J. FoleyJohn J. Foley Skilled Nursing FacilityJohn M. Kennedy Jr.Jon CooperJoseph SawickiJr.Kate BrowningKathy ReevesKenneth RozenbergMadeline LizzolMark L. SmithMedicaidMetropolitan Jewish Geriatric CentermissedPaul Sabatinopublic health careRichard PhillipsRichard R. SmithRidge Volunteer Fire DepartmentRobert LippSamantha BrasilleSt. Jerome’s Health Services Corp.St. Vincent Catholic Medical CentersSteve LevySuffolk Budget Review OfficeSuffolk CountySuffolk County Association of Municipal EmployeesSuffolk County Legislature’s Budget Review Officethe Mary Hibberd lawWayne Wachter
1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers, Anton Borovina, Bill Lindsay, Bishop Francis J. Mugavero Center for Geriatric Care, Brian Foley, Brookhaven, Charles “Peaches” Cameron, Cheryl Felice, Chris Barnes, Cover Story, Crain’s New York Business, Ed Romaine, featured, featured-scroll, George Barnes, health care, Jeanne Melnik, John J. Foley, John J. Foley Skilled Nursing Facility, John M. Kennedy Jr., Jon Cooper, Joseph Sawicki, Jr., Kate Browning, Kathy Reeves, Kenneth Rozenberg, Madeline Lizzol, Mark L. Smith, Medicaid, Metropolitan Jewish Geriatric Center, missed, Paul Sabatino, public health care, Richard Phillips, Richard R. Smith, Ridge Volunteer Fire Department, Robert Lipp, Samantha Brasille, St. Jerome’s Health Services Corp., St. Vincent Catholic Medical Centers, Steve Levy, Suffolk Budget Review Office, Suffolk County, Suffolk County Association of Municipal Employees, Suffolk County Legislature’s Budget Review Office, the Mary Hibberd law, Wayne Wachter
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Spencer Rumsey
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