What does Obama have against Connecticut?

Last month, there were two states that turned more Democratic in the wake of the midterm elections: California and Connecticut.
Ohio, meanwhile, shifted sharply toward the GOP.
So when the time came to cut a check for the $100 million earmark that U.S. Sen. Chris Dodd shoveled into the health care measure to help out plans to rebuild John Dempsey Hospital, you'd think collecting the cash would be no sweat.
The money was meant for Connecticut.
Connecticut is a solid Democratic state.
Yet Ohio gets the dollars.
Presidential politics, of course, plays a major role. Ohio is a valuable state in the Electoral College while Connecticut is more like Wyoming.
But what is the point of sending Democrats to Washington to represent Connecticut if the Democratic president is going to ship even our earmarks off to GOP hotbeds?
There's something seriously messed up when our lawmakers can't even secure money they build into the budget for their home state.
*****
Copyright 2010. All rights reserved. Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

New plan for UConn Health Center includes new hospital

Press release from Gov. Jodi Rell:

Governor Rell Unveils Partnership To Establish

UConn Health Network

New John Dempsey Hospital Centerpiece of $352M Initiative

           

Governor M. Jodi Rell today unveiled plans that would establish the UConn Health Network through a landmark partnership that will transform the delivery of healthcare in the state and lead to the creation of thousands of new jobs.

The Governor said the state and University of Connecticut are building the network in collaboration with Hartford Hospital, Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center, Connecticut Children’s Medical Center and other healthcare facilities and providers. The centerpiece of the partnership is a new state-of-the-art patient tower and totally renovated hospital at UConn Health Center campus in Farmington.

“This partnership will result in a state-of-the-art John Dempsey Hospital and a health network with incredible reach throughout Connecticut,” Governor Rell said. “Together, we will help lift the UConn schools of medicine into the top tier of academics and research and create thousands of healthcare jobs for our economy.

“This is a $352 million investment in a new hospital that will have increased classroom and lab space for more medical and dental students and will help offset anticipated shortages in these professions,” Governor Rell said. “The return on our investment will include a nationally recognized cancer center and specialized institutes and advanced training open to all healthcare professionals in the state. The tremendous benefit, of course, is a more robust healthcare sector that stands to gain 5,000 new jobs in the years to come.”

To pay for the new hospital and related facilities in the network, $100 million of the investment is expected to come from federal funds; $25 million for design and planning will come from already approved UConn 21^st Century funding; and $227 million will be in state bonding.

“This is a much lower state price tag than the $450 million original projection, with a far more robust network and partnership and far greater job and economic development opportunities,” the Governor said. 

UConn President Michael Hogan said the partnership puts the UConn Health Center on “firm footing” for a promising future.

“We’re grateful for the Governor’s vision and advocacy. Her proposal will stimulate job growth, promote economic development and improve access to the state-of-the-art healthcare that our faculty and staff deliver every day,” President Hogan said. “This kind of vision is exactly what’s needed as the State of Connecticut looks ahead to continuing its role as a leader in innovation and care for our citizens.”

In addition to the new hospital, the network features: 

·        Nationally recognized cancer center at the Farmington campus. Partners will seek federal designation of Comprehensive Cancer Center to make it the second in the state outside of Yale;

·        Primary Care Institute at St. Francis. Would be open to all healthcare professionals to develop new models of chronic disease management and primary care education and treatment;

·        Simulation center at Hartford Hospital. Open to all healthcare professionals to train on newest equipment and technology in simulated care settings;

·        Transfer of neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) to Connecticut Children’s Medical Center. NICU will still be at Dempsey, but run by CCMC’s regional children’s system;

·        Health disparities institute in the city of Hartford. Would promote enhanced healthcare research, training and delivery to minority communities;

·        Institute for Clinical and Translational Sciences on Farmington Campus. A super-site by network partners would speed lab-to-bedside clinical trials and breakthrough medicine;

·        Establishment of bioscience enterprise zone. Would offer state tax breaks to private companies that create jobs and work with UConn Health Network partners.

Governor Rell thanked President Hogan and all who worked with her on the proposal, including Sen. Chris Dodd, who helped secure the $100 million in federal funds.

*******
Copyright 2010. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

UConn-Hartford Hospital deal is dead

The Hartford Courant's Chris Keating has an email that indicates the proposal for a partnership between the UConn medical school and Hartford Hospital is kaput.

Bristol Hospital officials are no doubt thrilled, having warned that a new hospital in Farmington, paid for by taxpayers, could cripple Bristol's own hospital.

*******
Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

City leaders hail lawmakers' decision to bury UConn hospital plan

City leaders cheered the demise of a plan Friday that would have erected a new hospital in Farmington that might have undercut Bristol Hospital.
The proposed $500 million replacement for the University of Connecticut’s John Dempsey Hospital "would have clobbered Bristol Hospital," said state Sen. Tom Colapietro, a Bristol Democrat.
“The last thing Bristol needs is to lose its hospital,” said state Rep. Frank Nicastro, a Bristol Democrat.
Critics of the joint plan by UConn and Hartford Hospital said a new hospital would be too expensive and would likely draw some patients away from Bristol.
Bristol Hospital President Kurt Barwis said, “My concern is the direct impact on Bristol.”
Colapietro said that in a Democratic caucus Thursday "probably 85 percent" of the lawmakers said they opposed spending even $5 million on the project.
"It's dead," Colapietro said.
Barwis said that while the plan is dead for this year, it could always return.
“I don’t think that this is going to go away,” Barwis said.
State Rep. Bill Hamzy, a Plymouth Republican whose district includes northwestern Bristol, said he’s pleased the plan died.
But, he said, “we can’t maintain the status quo over at UConn. We have to come up with a plan that’s mutually beneficial to the other hospitals in the area.”
“It’s almost like this plan had to fail in order to get people focused on a better plan. So we just go from there,” Hamzy said.
Hamzy said it’s important now to “switch gears and come up with a plan” that works for everyone.
“We have to do it,” Hamzy said. “It’s not going to be easy.”
Nicastro said the wide opposition in the Senate doomed this year’s plan. He said many legislators come from areas served by community hospitals and they were concerned about the impact statewide.
“It was way too much money,” Nicastro said. “This is just not the time to even consider that.”
Colapietro said the decision will surely shock the university's backers.
"They are used to running roughshod over the legislature," Colapietro said. "But now we have a new generation" that's more skeptical of its big money requests, he said.
“We don’t have that kind of money. We’re fighting to stay afloat,” Nicastro said.
Barwis said there hasn’t been a serious look at the cost of the proposal on health care or on community hospitals in the region.
He said that Bristol’s legislators really came through.
“I can’t say enough about our local delegation. Sen. Colapietro and all of our local delegation have been absolutely phenomenal,” Barwis said.
Colapietro “stayed solid with us” and helped ensure the demise of the UConn hospital plan, Barwis said.
Nicastro said that promoters of the project sealed its fate because the way they pushed it “was wrong” and counterproductive.
Barwis said he agrees the medical school needs more support and expressed the hope that a new hospital could be built in Hartford instead, a city that needs a jolt of development.

*******
Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

UConn hospital plan "dead"

A proposed new hospital for the University of Connecticut in Farmington is dead, at least for this year.
That's great news for Bristol, said state Sen. Tom Colapietro, a Bristol Democrat.

"It would have clobbered Bristol Hospital," the senator said, by pulling away patients who might have gone to Bristol instead.

UConn hoped to snag $40 million or more to begin designing a replacement for the John Dempse Hospital in collaboration with Hartford Hospital.

But the plan couldn't attract enough support to move ahead.

Colapietro said that in a Democratic caucus Thursday, "probably 85 percent" of the lawmakers said they opposed spending even $5 million on the project.

"It's dead," Colapietro said.

He said the decsion will surely shock the university's backers.

"They are used to running roughshod over the legislature," Colapietro said. "But now we have a new generation" that's more skeptical of its big money requests, he said.

Colapietro called it "terrific" that Bristol Hospital won't get cut out by a costly new state plan.

*******
Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

LeBeau backs new UConn hospital

Speaking to the city’s Democratic town committee late Monday, Democratic gubernatorial hopeful Gary LeBeau said a new state hospital in Farmington is needed.
“We need to build a new UConn hospital,” said LeBeau, a state senator from East Hartford.
Bristol Hospital strongly opposes the $500 million plan to erect a new hospital at the University of Connecticut Health Center and have it operated by Hartford Hospital, fearing the expanded, updated facility would hinder its ability to attract patients.
Resident Chris Roberge said that local hospitals believe they “are getting the short end of the stick” in the plan lawmakers are considering.
But LeBeau said that constructing the new hospital is “an important part of our future” and needs to be done even if it upsets some in Bristol.
He said it would be “a major generator of jobs” through spinoff businesses that may include firms devoted to stem cell research, pharmaceuticals and other high-end enterprises that Connecticut must attract.
LeBeau, one of a handful of potential Democratic candidates in next year’s race for the state’s top job, said he is not an expert in health care issues and is willing to listen to arguments.
But, he said, the state can’t go on subsidizing the existing 224-bed John Dempsey Hospital in Farmington every year when it could be a driving force for growth instead.
“There’s a lot to be said” for the proposed partnership with Hartford Hospital, LeBeau said.
He said that UConn’s facility would have better administrative oversight with Hartford Hospital’s involvement.
Bristol Hospital and other regional hospitals that are not connected to Hartford Hospital argue that a larger, more modern facility will undermine community health care in places such as Bristol.
But supporters of the plan argue that a new hospital will help the economy and ensure that UConn can continue to attract top students and staff to its medical school.

*******
Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Bristol Hospital chief opposes new Farmington hospital

Reporter Jackie Majerus wrote this story last week:

After waiting for hours to testify against a proposal to build a state-financed facility in Farmington for the University of Connecticut and Hartford Hospital, Bristol Hospital President Kurt Barwis came out swinging.

“From Bristol’s perspective, we’re talking about $605 million, plus $13 million per year in costs that are going to be covered by the state,” said Barwis of the plan to replace John Dempsey Hospital with a 225-bed facility that would be run by Hartford Hospital.

“This is ridiculous,” said Barwis. “It’s astronomical.”

Given three minutes to make his case – and then a little extra time beyond the buzzer to finish his remarks – Barwis spoke before the state Committee on Higher Education and Employment Advancement at the Capitol on Thursday.

He aimed to show that the proposed new hospital would be poor and costly public policy, that it would hurt community hospitals like the one in Bristol and that the deal would give Hartford Hospital, UConn and its affiliates nearly half the region’s share of the market.

It’s not an easy battle for Barwis. Not only was he limited in speaking time during the hearing, but the economic study supporting the new hospital wasn’t done by an independent party, he said.

“It was compiled by a professor at UConn,” said Barwis, who said lawmakers deserve a report that couldn’t be considered biased. “They need to engage completely independent finance and economic experts to do the work.”

The impact on Bristol Hospital and other community hospitals if this plan comes to pass, said Barwis, would be “dramatic.”

If there’s a brand new hospital in a neighboring town and patients have a choice, the local hospital, without benefit of a state-sponsored expansion, could lose out, according to Barwis.

“We can’t compete with that,” he said.

Barwis told the committee that Bristol Hospital, with more than 1,700 employees, is the second largest employer in Bristol. The hospital’s economic importance to Bristol “cannot be underestimated,” Barwis said. The proposal, if adopted, would jeopardize the hospital’s stability and role in the community, he said.

Like other hospitals in the state, Barwis said, Bristol Hospital has no access to capital in this economy and depends on its investments for income.

“That’s vaporizing,” said Barwis. “We’re fragile.”

Another problem brought on by the recession, according to Barwis, is that job losses mean more uninsured patients, which means less income for the hospital.

“People are losing their jobs,” said Barwis. “There’s going to be more people on the state programs.”

Currently, the hospital provides more than $11 million in uncompensated care and charity every year, according to Barwis.

It is under these conditions that Bristol Hospital is facing what Barwis called an “incredibly competitive monopoly” if the proposed deal goes through.

Barwis said Bristol Hospital supports UConn having multiple affiliations to make the medical school stronger, but not if it means creating an unfair advantage in the medical marketplace.

The University Hospital, Barwis said, could eventually include not only Hartford Hospital, but also MidState Hospital and the Hospital of Central Connecticut. If it did, Barwis said, that combined entity would hold more than 47 percent share of the Greater Hartford market.

Having almost half the market share will give the combined hospitals a competitive edge when dealing with insurers, according to Barwis.

“They’re going to be able to negotiate a higher price for their services,” said Barwis, which he said could eventually lead to higher insurance rates.

“A little bit of competition is never bad,” said Barwis. “It keeps everybody honest.”

Barwis said that John Dempsey Hospital is likely outdated, but that other hospitals also need investment.

“Many of Connecticut’s hospitals require substantial renovations and improvements,” said Barwis, adding that there’s nothing to indicate that the massive investment proposed for a new hospital for UConn would solve its financial problems.

Barwis said he isn’t against everything that’s being proposed.

Bristol Hospital supports the health education and research collaborative, which would have medical students working and learning at hospitals in the region. The collaborative would play a vital role in the development of a statewide solution for clinical care as well as medical education and research, Barwis said, benefiting both students and hospitals.

He said Bristol Hospital is “eager to be an academic partner” of the UConn Health Care Center, and said such collaboration with community hospitals can be done without building an expensive new facility.

*******
Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Don't build a new hospital in Farmington

A 58-page report on the supposed economic benefits of having the state build a $500 million hospital to replace the UConn Health Center -- and then give it to Hartford Hospital along with an annual subsidy -- doesn't take even a glancing look at the impact the plan would have on Bristol Hospital or the community it serves.
In fact, Bristol isn't mentioned even a single time in the entire report. Neither, for that matter, is New Britain.
I can understand the push to have a medical hospital devoted to training the next generation of doctors, but the logic of having it in Farmington escapes me completely. Put it where the medical need is greatest: in Hartford.
Bristol and New Britain, the two cities closest to the UConn Health Center, have hospitals that are serving the area just fine. They are also more than willing to work with doctors in training, too, because they would benefit greatly from that.
But putting a giant new hospital on the site of the failed John Dempsey Hospital doesn't make any sense at all, even if the study finds it will create 18,200 jobs by 2040. I'd be curious if it would create as many jobs if it was built next door to Hartford Hospital, or if Hartford Hospital got the money to expand instead.
It's probably worth having a top-flight medical school in Farmington, but any associated hospital ought to be in Hartford, where it can draw from a wider region, serve a needier population and present young physicians with a wider range of health issues.
Wouldn't it make more sense to put money into expanding Hartford Hospital or St. Francis Hospital where they are now than to replace a hospital in Farmington that's already shown it's in the wrong place?
Why should taxpayers foot the bill for a brand new second hospital for Hartford Hospital to operate? For the same money, after all, we could easily enhance a whole bunch of other hospitals, including Bristol Hospital.
I'd rather have a number of renovated hospitals around the state than one great big new one that serves a truncated, squeezed area so close to existing institutions. I'd bet, too, that overhauling the other hospitals instead would create at least as many jobs -- and more of them would be in Bristol.

*******
Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com