Attorney General Candidate Backs Hospital, Coalition

Coalition for a New Village Hospital’s outreach scored a big win today as Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice, a Democratic candidate for NY Attorney General, issued a bold statement of support.

We’ve reached out to all the candidates for Attorney General and Governor, and are expecting to hear from more in the next few days.

Former St. Vincent’s Hospital Employees and Lower West Side Community Welcomes Statement of Public Support From Attorney General Candidate Kathleen Rice

New York, NY – August 19th, 2010 6 pm-– Yetta Kurland of Kurland, Bonica & Associates, P.C. a member of The Coalition For A New Village Hospital, the community organization that filed suit against the NYS Department of Health on Monday August 16^th, responded to a clear statement of support today from Attorney General Candidate Kathleen Rice.

In a statement issued today, Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice, Democratic candidate for Attorney General, announced, “As the next Attorney General, I will work with community advocates and Department of Health to help facilitate the return of a hospital to serve the people of the Lower West Side."

In making the statement, Rice became one of the first State officials to support the Coalition’s goals.

Said Kurland, “We welcome this powerful support from District Attorney Rice and her commitment to returning a vitally needed hospital and Level One Trauma Center to the Lower West Side Community. This closure has left hundreds of thousands without vital medical care and has thrown our community into a health crisis. We look forward to working closely with Nassau’s District Attorney Kathleen Rice in realizing our goal, and look forward to the support emerging from leaders throughout the State.”

On August 16th, the attorneys petitioned Manhattan Supreme Court to obtain information concerning the closure plan of St. Vincent’s Hospital. "It is our hope that the information we are able to secure in this action will help in realizing the return of a hospital to the community,” said Kurland. The Article 78 proceeding will be heard on September 8, 2010 in NYS Supreme Court by Judge O. Peter Sherwood.

"This community needs a hospital and deserves the truth. Today’s announcement of support from Kathleen Rice opens the door to a new, positive conversation, and we look forward to sitting down with local leaders to hear their views” said Eileen Dunn, RN, and a founding member of the Coalition.

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