NUMC's Meg Ryan testifies in Albany saying more state money is needed

Daily Point

CEO criticizes proposed change in state law that could bring in new leadership

Late in the afternoon Tuesday, after hours of testimony by others, Nassau University Medical Center chief executive Megan Ryan finally sat before a joint session of the state legislature’s health committees.

There, she boiled down previously submitted testimony into a short speech emphasizing reforms she said NUMC had undertaken and the hospital’s need for state funding. And she faced questioning from four Long Island lawmakers — who illustrated just how differently the hospital is perceived depending on who is asking the questions.

Ryan suggested that NUMC hasn’t received state funds despite applying for a variety of programs. She also emphasized NUMC’s assertion that the state has used the hospital’s own funds to front money owed to the hospital through the federal programs that provide money to cover the cost of low-income patients. That dispute led NUMC and its public health corporation, Nassau Health Care Corp., to sue New York State for $1 billion in December.

"I’m asking for a restoration of our aid," Ryan said.

Ryan also criticized changes proposed in Gov. Kathy Hochul’s executive budget that would modify language regarding the Health Department’s ability to install a "temporary operator" when a facility experiences severe financial trouble. She said those changes were "inappropriate" within the budget process. State officials have discussed invoking the temporary operator clause for NUMC — a move that would most likely put Ryan out of a job.

Ryan suggested that state funds would help the hospital come to a deal on a contract with the Civil Service Employees Association, the hospital’s main union, which has been without a contract for two years.

But in her written testimony, Ryan went even further, suggesting a lack of state funding was the reason NUMC was losing money. "Our efforts over the last year have shown conclusively that if the State fulfilled its obligations, NUMC would be profitable and therefore remain a valued asset for our communities for decades to come," her testimony said.

During the hearing, Ryan pointed to significant progress she said the hospital has made, noting that NUMC started the year with $11 million in the bank, and ended the year with nearly $90 million. "We do pay our bills," Ryan said.

But Assemb. Michaelle Solages pushed back, noting that NUMC owes $400 million to the New York Health Insurance Program. The hospital has been paying $2 million each month, though it owes $9 million a month, leading its NYSHIP debt to increase $84 million each year.

Ryan said the $2 million monthly payment was part of a deal that predated her tenure as chief executive. "Under that payment plan — and I did not make that deal — we are up to date," Ryan said.

Solages asked Ryan how much the hospital spent on the "multiple mailers" that NUMC has sent to Nassau residents, mailers that have celebrated the hospital’s successes and criticized the state.

"I don’t have that number on me," Ryan replied.

Solages asked Ryan about her "vision" for the hospital and its future finances.

"My vision is to keep the doors open," Ryan said wryly, adding that she’d be willing to consider "strategic partnerships" but that "bad press" and the "back and forth" with the state have damaged that possibility.

And while she noted that hospital executives have "optimized" the health care system’s services, Ryan’s long-term financial plan rested on one central goal: "To get our funding from New York State that we are entitled to."

Assemb. Noah Burroughs also pushed Ryan regarding her request for state funding.

"I’d like to base my life in reality," Burroughs said, questioning the reasons for NUMC’s large deficits of the past. "To say you weren’t funded, that’s not the answer."

In response, Ryan blamed past mismanagement and reemphasized the lawsuit’s ask for missing state dollars.

Ryan faced less pointed questioning from Assembs. Ed Ra and Steve Rhoads, both Republicans.

Ra noted that while state Health Department officials have sent letters expressing concern about the hospital, they haven’t met with Ryan and her team.

"I appreciate the strides you and your staff and your team have made there," Ra told Ryan.

Rhoads highlighted the hospital’s financial progress, asking about decreases in the hospital’s deficit.

Ryan confirmed those decreased losses. But the numbers she cited, which were previously disclosed in budget documents late last year, seem to include the money hospital officials are hoping they’ll get from the still-pending lawsuit against the state.

"The reforms are working," Ryan said.

Rhoads took his time to speak directly to state officials.

"Stop playing politics with the leadership of this hospital," Rhoads said.

The contrast in the questioning by Solages and Burroughs, both Democrats, and Ra and Rhoads, both Republicans, seemed to show politics is being played on all sides when it comes to NUMC.

— Randi F. Marshall randi.marshall@newsday.com

Pencil Point

A gnawing problem

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Data Point

Suffolk’s processing time for food-stamp applications gets snappier

Suffolk County has improved its processing time of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) applications in the last year, outpacing the New York State average, according to data from the county. The processing time rate, or the percentage of applications processed within the 30-day deadline, was at 59% in January 2024. That rate improved to 95% last month while the state rate was 85%. 

A year ago, Newsday reported on the widespread delays in Suffolk’s processing of food stamp applications, citing data obtained by the Empire Justice Center, an Albany-based legal advocacy group. Pandemic-related backlogs, staffing shortages and a cyberattack were linked to the slowdown in application processing rates, according to Newsday. Eligible households are entitled to SNAP benefits within 30 days of application under a federal law. The average SNAP application processing rate in New York State coming out of the pandemic was 71% in 2022. 

The new administration in Suffolk County reallocated staff from other departments to address the backlog of applications and improved systems, keeping metrics on calls and wait times, according to Michael Martino, a spokesman for Suffolk County Executive Edward P. Romaine.

The program, funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, aims to help feed low-income working people, senior citizens and people with disabilities. It can only be used to buy food. With the program directly pegged to household income levels, many Long Islanders who face acute food insecurity do not meet SNAP eligibility since salaries are relatively higher than the national average, but so is the cost of living.

Suffolk County has a food insecurity rate affecting 8.1% or about 123,670 people, according to 2022 data analyzed by food bank nonprofit Feeding America. Only 47% of those individuals meet SNAP eligibility requirements. Meanwhile, Nassau has a food insecurity rate of 7% or about 97,500 residents, of whom only 45% are below the SNAP threshold.

As many as 81,367 households in Suffolk were dependent on SNAP benefits in December 2024, as per caseload data from State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance. This was an 11.9% increase from the previous year. Meanwhile, in Nassau, 31,767 households used SNAP benefits, a 2.8% uptick from 2023.

The future of SNAP funding is uncertain as the White House continues to propose deep cuts to various federally funded agencies. The House Agriculture Committee is planning to cut about $150 billion in SNAP-related programs, according to Politico’s reporting on Monday. The program serves an average of 42.1 million people in the country each month.

— Karthika Namboothiri karthika.namboothiri@newsday.com

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