Audits important factor in NUMC's survival

During the 1980s, I was a senior auditor in the state comptroller’s office and, subsequently, an associate auditor in the state Department of Social Services. I was the auditor in charge of the Medicare/Medicaid audit [“NUMC posts $142M deficit in ’23,” News, June  22].

A review of three years of medical records at Nassau University Medical Center showed a failure to post records of medical visits in patients’ charts for a substantial number of visits billed to Medicaid. The result was a clawback of federal and state aid funds.

Perhaps the state or federal governments should take over administration of NUMC because we don’t want a repeat of what happened to Long Beach Memorial Hospital when its president and treasurer would not respond to audit findings at the exit conference.

 — Lillian Baum, Long Beach

The critique of Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman was over the top [“Blakeman’s troubling power grab,” Editorial, June  23].

Although I’m a longtime Democrat and supporter of former County Executive Laura Curran, who often disagrees with Blakeman’s policies, the several actions and positions that the editorial characterizes as “power grabs” are no more than his philosophical approach to municipal governance and his policy views. Fair enough.

A couple of criticisms raised, though, are troubling — NUMC’s precarious financial condition and paying costly legal fees.

As an original member of the Nassau Interim Finance Authority, I know NUMC has long been an albatross for every county executive for more than 50 years and, sadly, a landing spot for cronies. Sell it or close it. It cannot be fixed.

Hiring expensive attorneys? Why shouldn’t Nassau County taxpayers get the best lawyers to handle public business? It’s value, not price.

Let’s judge public officials fairly and not close our eyes to reality and history.

— David H. Peirez, Great Neck