SAINT VINCENT CATHOLIC MEDICAL CENTERS SIGNS PURCHASE AGREEMENT WITH BAYONNE MEDICAL CENTER FOR ST. VINCENT�S HOSPITAL STATEN ISLAND
05/18/2006
Media Contact: Michael Fagan 212-604-7965
- Hospital To Continue Long Tradition of Serving Staten Island Residents -
Saint Vincent Catholic Medical Centers announced today that it has taken another step toward being able to pursue its planned reorganization and emergence from bankruptcy by signing an asset purchase agreement with an affiliate of Bayonne Medical Center for St. Vincent�s Hospital Staten Island. The agreement is an important step in a process that both parties hope will insure that St. Vincent�s Hospital will remain a healthcare resource on Staten Island.
The signing of the agreement is part of a rigorous process to identify a new sponsor for St. Vincent�s Hospital Staten Island, which included soliciting interest for the hospital from numerous healthcare organizations. Bayonne Medical Center conducted its due diligence and has developed a plan and vision for the future of the hospital. It is committed to growing St. Vincent�s Hospital Staten Island, meeting the critical healthcare needs of Staten Island residents.
The signing of the agreement with Bayonne Medical Center�s affiliate provides a level of assurance to the people of Staten Island that health care services will remain on the North Shore of Staten Island,� said Guy Sansone, President and CEO of Saint Vincent Catholic Medical Centers. This agreement must still go through a bankruptcy auction and regulatory approvals, but it paves the way for a revitalized hospital for Staten Islanders, and is a positive step toward the planned reorganization of Saint Vincent Catholic Medical Centers.�
The graduate medical education programs at the hospital will continue, preserving its academic mission as a teaching hospital on Staten Island providing residency training to physicians. The new sponsor has also agreed to continue relationships with Local 1199 SEIU, NYSNA, and the other local unions.
This agreement strengthens the missions of both organizations and allows each to be better able to survive and thrive over the long term,� said Herman Brockman, Chair of the Board, Bayonne Medical Center.
Saint Vincent Catholic Medical Centers will retain its Continuing Care programs on Staten Island that include Pax Christi Hospice, Home Care Services, as well as St. Elizabeth Ann�s Healthcare & Rehabilitation Center, which is comprised of the skilled nursing facility, and its specialty units for neurobehavioral, ventilator dependent and AIDS patients. Saint Vincent�s will also continue to operate its supportive housing programs for people living with mental illness on Staten Island.
Behavioral health services provided on the Bayley Seton campus will be assumed by the new entity and will continue to be located on Staten Island.
The asset purchase agreement, together with proposed procedures for an auction, has been submitted to the Bankruptcy Court for approval. Saint Vincent�s will request that the bankruptcy auction be held within approximately 40 days of approval of the auction procedures by the Bankruptcy Court. Bayonne�s affiliate will serve as the stalking horse� at the bankruptcy auction. The term stalking horse� is used to identify both Saint Vincent�s preferred bidder as it enters the auction process and the bid that other potential purchasers must exceed to be able to participate in the bankruptcy auction.
Saint Vincent�s will evaluate competing bids (if any) at the bankruptcy auction using a number of factors. Among other things, it will consider the economic value of competing bids, community interests, the ability of competing bidders to close on any proposed transaction in a timely manner, and the financial ability and commitment of competing bidders to fulfill financial obligations under their bids and to make future capital investments that are required for the long-term viability of the hospital.
This is an important step in a very long process,� explained Robert Evans, President and CEO of Bayonne Medical Center. Still, this represents progress and we are excited by the opportunities it could create.�
Saint Vincent�s and Bayonne will continue to keep its employees, physicians, elected officials, community leaders, and the New York State Department of Health informed as the process moves forward.
About Saint Vincent�s
Saint Vincent Catholic Medical Centers is one of the New York metropolitan area�s most comprehensive health care systems, serving nearly 600,000 people annually. SVCMC was established in 2000 as a result of the merger of Catholic Medical Centers of Brooklyn and Queens, Saint Vincents Hospital and Medical Center of New York and Sisters of Charity Healthcare in Staten Island. Sponsored by the Roman Catholic Bishop of Brooklyn and the president of the Sisters of Charity of New York, SVCMC serves as the academic medical center of New York Medical College in New York City.
The system includes six hospitals: Mary Immaculate Hospital, Queens; St. John�s Queens Hospital; St. Vincent�s Hospital Manhattan; St. Vincent�s Hospital Staten Island; Bayley Seton Hospital, Staten Island; and St. Vincent�s Hospital Westchester. Resources include over 2,500 physicians, four skilled nursing facilities, a system-wide home care service, a hospice and over 60 ambulatory care sites which provide a broad array of medical, psychiatric and substance abuse services. In 2004, SVCMC recorded over 92,000 inpatient discharges, more than 1,100,000 outpatient visits, and 640,000 home care visits. Its emergency rooms, which include three Level 1 trauma centers, received 255,000 visits in that same year, while SVCMC is the largest private provider of EMS services in the New York City Fire Department�s 9-1-1 service. In 2003, St. Vincent�s Midtown (formerly St. Clare�s Hospital) became affiliated with the healthcare system.
