Blakeman won't appoint members to new, state-controlled NUMC board

Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman said he will not make his appointments to the board overseeing the financially troubled Nassau University Medical Center, calling it a state-led "charade" that fails to prioritize patient care.

Blakeman accused Gov. Kathy Hochul with orchestrating a "takeover" of Long Island's only public hospital — now composed of an 11-member board — at a news conference Tuesday alongside NUMC staff. 

The new board, proposed by Hochul and approved by the State Legislature last month, effectively shifts control of NUMC to the governor and majority state lawmakers, in this case Democrats, and away the county executive, which is currently under Republican control.

Hochul and legislators took over the facility after alleging years of mismanagement that’s driven NUMC into hundreds of millions of dollars of debt.

Newsday reported last month that NuHealth reported a deficit of $1.4 billion at the end of last year. Yearly operating losses at NUMC have steadily increased, from $102 million in 2020 to $144 million in 2024, Newsday has reported.

"We are going to overturn this power grab," Blakeman said outside of the hospital Tuesday. "I have no desire to play this charade. I have no desire to be involved in the governor's cover-up. I have no desire to be involved in the subterfuge. And I will not be part of Gov. Hochul's puppet show. We want local control back at this hospital."

Blakeman also repeated unfounded claims Hochul and state Democrats planned to close NUMC. The governor's office and Democratic lawmakers have called the idea of a shutdown a "complete fabrication."

Hochul spokesman Gordon Tepper called Blakeman's assertions "ridiculous" and said the state is prioritizing patient care and financial stability at NUMC.

"The board's restructuring is unequivocally the best possible thing that could happen for anyone who relies on NUMC," Tepper said "Due to years of gross mismanagement, the hospital is in financial peril. The restructuring was a desperately needed intervention to save the hospital from the previous leadership's wild mismanagement."

Seven of the 11 board members of the Nassau Health Care Corp., or NuHealth, which oversees the hospital, have already been named by Hochul, along with state and county Democrats. Only six members are needed for a quorum on the board.

Language in the state budget gives Blakeman two appointments to the board while another two are selected by Nassau Presiding Officer Howard Kopel (R-Lawrence). 

"Governor Hochul is more interested in a political 'power grab' than the health and well-being of residents who are served by Nassau's 'safety net' hospital," Kopel spokeswoman Mary Studdert said in a statement that did not address whether he, too, will abstain from making appointments to the board.

Last month, Hochul selected Stuart Rabinowitz, the former Hofstra University president, to serve as chairman of the NUMC board.

On Tuesday, Rabinowitz told Newsday he's "disappointed" with Blakeman's decision, "but we have a mission to do. We have a job to accomplish. And we're going to move ahead."

Hochul over the weekend announced the appointment of JP Morgan Chase community manager Amy Flores, civic leader and real estate investment firm president Lisa Warren, and health care executive Dean Mihaltses, a licensed pharmacist who served as interim chief executive at New York City Health & Hospitals in Queens.

On Tuesday, Hochul also appointed, with recommendations from the Democrat-led Assembly, former Assemb. Rory Lancman, a current member of the Great Neck Library board of trustees and vice chairman of the Nassau Interim Finance Authority, as its board representative.

The governor also selected, with recommendations from the Democrat-controlled State Senate, clinical social worker Lisa Newland, who chairs the Department of Social Work at Molloy University.

And Legislature Minority Leader Delia DeRiggi-Whitton chose employment attorney Jason Abelove, who served on the NUMC board in its previous incarnation.

The newly constituted board plans to hold its first meeting June 10 and is expected to begin a nationwide search for a replacement for chief executive Megan Ryan, who announced she is resigning the post effective July 20.

Language in the state budget also gives NIFA oversight of the hospital, including the authority to approve contracts of more than $1 million and permission to impose a financial control period on NUMC — similar to one already in place for the county.

NuHeath is also required to conduct a comprehensive study, with public input, about the long-term viability of the hospital, due by Dec. 1, 2026,

NIFA Chairman Richard Kessel said the board will meet with or without Blakeman's appointees.

"They don't want to work with us," he said. "We'll do it ourselves."

 NUMC is the county’s "safety net" hospital, which means it accepts many patients with insufficient or no health insurance.

Outgoing NuHealth board chair Irina Gelman, a Blakeman appointee, said Tuesday there's been no planning by the state for the transition to a new board.

"My concerns is for our employees, our patients and our residents," said Gelman, who also serves as Nassau's Health Department commissioner. "Employee morale is at an all-time low. The concern is for employee retention, the low staffing, the continuity of patient care and operations as a critical safety net hospital." 

The overhaul came after the Hochul and Blakeman administrations began talks last fall about a long-term strategy for NUMC. Those talks eventually halted and NuHealth sued the state, claiming it shortchanged the facility more than $1 billion in aid. The lawsuit, which state officials have called a stunt, is continuing.

But Blakeman insisted Tuesday the current hospital leadership was making progress in revamping NUMC's finances.

"The turnaround of this hospital the last four years has been remarkable," he said.

Nassau Legis. Seth Koslow (D-Merrick), who will challenge Blakeman in November, said the county executive's "refusal to name board members isn’t a protest — it’s a blatant refusal to do his job."