Move to Sell Nursing Home Is DANGEROUS – Sullivan County Residents MUST SPEAK OUT!

It is time for the leadership of the Sullivan County Legislature and our County Manager to take a step back and seriously look at what they are doing to our County.

In just six short months OUR GOVERNMENT has been turned into a backroom, closed door dictatorship run by a chairman who apparently thinks he is an elected County Executive and not the Chairman of an elected legislative body.

Legislators who are considered outcasts are not being included in the process, caucuses inclusive of legislators of a political party are not being called, steering committees seem over with.

All we have is a Chairman who has what appears to be four other elected officials who rubber stamp everything he wants, and four other elected legislators who are only included in the process once decisions from the five have been made.  It is too little and too late for the four to have any say in the process.

Like any new elected body there is always a learning curve and a grace period, so during the first few months it is best to take a back seat, watch, and hopefully things get figured out.

For me, the last straw is the proposed sale of our County run nursing home and how certain people are ramming this down the throats of Sullivan County residents, and the devastating impact it can potentially have on our senior citizen population.

Part of the mandate of any government is to make certain our most vulnerable population is taken care of at any cost. Any government whether it be Democrat or Republican led has this moral obligation to our society.

The Sullivan County run nursing home which has undergone some name changes over the years, has always had a pristine reputation for taking care of our elderly.

In fact, many of our elected officials and business leaders placed their beloved family members in the facility because of their outstanding service and care.  

Sullivan County houses four private nursing home facilities, Achieve in Liberty, an adult home in Jeffersonville, a unit in our hospital in Harris, and another in Roscoe. All are respected and provide a great alternative to a county run facility.

If the Sullivan County Legislature led by Robert Doherty and County Manager Josh Potosek gets their way, our county run Nursing Home with the new fancy name – The Care Center at Sunset Lake – will be joining the ranks of privatization.

Under the shield and excuse of COVID19 and the financial burdens it is bringing on municipalities, the County suddenly wants to market the nursing home and sell the facility to a potential buyer.

Amazingly, for the County the facility loses money – but for a potential buyer it could become a cash cow. Otherwise, why would anyone want it?

There might be good reasoning to sell the facility. But – that must entail a long thought out process and investigation.

What Doherty and Potosek and some members of the legislature are doing right now is deplorable, shameful, and outright disgusting.

On July 2nd, the legislature went into executive session behind closed doors, returned, and then made a motion to sell the Adult Care Center at Sunset Lake.

As a result, this Tuesday July 14th at 8:00 AM in the morning the legislature will be holding a thirty-minute public hearing on the matter seeking community input. That’s right – 8 AM in the morning!  

Once the public hearing is concluded, it is believed the Legislature will continue with the process to sell the Adult Home by moving it into a Local Development Corporation (LDC), as a first step toward selling the nursing home and short-term rehabilitation facility.

Under the banner of the aftermath of COVID19, Doherty said “We have consistently lost millions of dollars a year on its operation, due to shrinking State and Federal funding and ever-increasing costs. Now, we’re at a point where COVID-19 has dashed any hope of increasing revenue streams for the foreseeable future, and we cannot ask taxpayers to shoulder even more of the heavy financial weight. Yet neither do we want to close it, considering the critical services and employment it provides to our community.”

The Sullivan County issued press release further stated,” For the past two years alone, the 146-bed Care Center has averaged a $3.5 million annual operating loss. In addition, the County has had to contribute $2-$2.7 million of local dollars to be able to access Federal aid. The existing accumulated deficit balloons to nearly $22 million when factoring in long-term liabilities like post-employment benefits, accrued compensation and vacation, and depreciation of the 30-year-old facility.

My office has been working diligently to avoid closing the facility by instead selling it, with the expectation that the new owner will maintain a minimum number of beds and most, if not all, of the existing positions, along with expanding and improving the Care Center in a way that the County is simply not able to do,” County Manager Joshua Potosek explained. “This is the best and really only option to pursue. Keeping the Care Center open under County ownership would involve a significant tax hike, layoffs and/or cuts in existing services, none of which our community can afford.”

Perhaps they are right. But there is no rush. There needs to be a complete investigation and due diligence. It is irresponsible to ram this down the throats of Sullivan County residents. This is a clear sign of a dictatorship kind of leadership.

There must be a process and an investigatory period. You don’t wake up on a Summer morning before July 4^th weekend and announce you are selling our beloved nursing home facility. You Just Don’t Do It!  It is wrong on so many levels.

Back in 2010 our county formed a task force to explore different options concerning the future of the nursing home. Although alternatives included privatizing, shutting down the facility, or partnering with another entity, the county did its due diligence to protect the interests of our seniors and taxpayers. Great organizations such as SLAC came out of that task force.

As a result, Sullivan County decided not to sell our nursing home facility.

It is wrong to hold this public hearing on Tuesday morning. More work, research, and community input are needed.

We need one legislator to finally break from this lock hold of five and think about the people of Sullivan County.

Every legislator must be included in the process. This is about Sullivan County and our future. People need to work together. All the good and progress Sullivan County has seen over the past several years is being destroyed. Why? What is the motive?  WE ALL NEED TO WORK TOGETHER FOR A BETTER SULLIVAN COUNTY!

I beg all residents to contact your legislator. Discuss the matter with them. Email your comments to annmarie.martin@co.sullivan.ny.us.

Please do something!

There is just no rush to sell our beloved nursing home. Fix what is not working. That is your obligation as elected officials. Dusting it off and getting rid of it is NOT the answer!

A potential buyer will always be there.

Our seniors are not livestock, they are human beings, they deserve to be treated with care and respect. They deserve a quality of life. They are our people. Don’t make them a statistic.

Below is the official Sullivan County press release and Fact Sheet.

SULLIVAN COUNTY TO SELL NURSING HOME: Legislature Begins Process to Sell Care Center at Sunset Lake No Plans to Close the Facility

Monticello, NY – As part of the ongoing response to the serious fiscal crisis Sullivan County is facing, legislators on Thursday unanimously voted to set a public hearing to transfer the Care Center at Sunset Lake (the Sullivan County Adult Care Center) in Liberty to a Local Development Corporation (LDC), as a first step toward selling the nursing home and short-term rehabilitation facility.

“This was not an easy decision but a necessary one in order to ensure the Care Center continues to fulfill the valuable role it’s played in our community for three decades,” said Legislature Chairman Robert A. Doherty. “We have consistently lost millions of dollars a year on its operation, due to shrinking State and Federal funding and ever-increasing costs. Now, we’re at a point where COVID-19 has dashed any hope of increasing revenue streams for the foreseeable future, and we cannot ask taxpayers to shoulder even more of the heavy financial weight. Yet neither do we want to close it, considering the critical services and employment it provides to our community.”

For the past two years alone, the 146-bed Care Center has averaged a $3.5 million annual operating loss. In addition, the County has had to contribute $2-$2.7 million of local dollars to be able to access Federal aid. The existing accumulated deficit balloons to nearly $22 million when factoring in long-term liabilities like post-employment benefits, accrued compensation and vacation, and depreciation of the 30-year-old facility.

My office has been working diligently to avoid closing the facility by instead selling it, with the expectation that the new owner will maintain a minimum number of beds and most, if not all, of the existing positions, along with expanding and improving the Care Center in a way that the County is simply not able to do,” County Manager Joshua Potosek explained. “This is the best and really only option to pursue. Keeping the Care Center open under County ownership would involve a significant tax hike, layoffs and/or cuts in existing services, none of which our community can afford.”

On July 14 at 8 a.m. at the Government Center in Monticello, legislators will take public comment on a proposal to transfer the Care Center to the LDC, a nonprofit corporation created by the County to handle the sale of the nursing home and the land on which it sits. A vote by the Legislature to make that transfer will be held subsequent to the public hearing.

Under State law, an LDC has broader abilities than the County to initiate and conclude a sale that is in the best interests of the County and the Care Center, and it will be able to bond up to the amount we anticipate the Care Center will minimally sell for (in the millions of dollars, at the least),” said Potosek. “Most of that will flow directly into County coffers later this year, thus helping us avoid a potential tax hike in the next budget cycle.”

The LDC will be overseen by three members of the community, appointed by the County Manager, and they will be tasked with carrying out the bonding and finding a real estate firm to market the Care Center. They then will choose the most responsible party interested in the Care Center and initiate a sale. Selection criteria will include not just the offer price but the track record of the buyer and the quality of care they promise to provide.

I expect this will take approximately 12 months or more, during which the Care Center will continue to be operated by the County (or a third party) via a lease with the LDC,” remarked Chairman Doherty. “Until a sale is finalized, workers will remain County employees with all their normal benefits. We hope to work out an agreement with the buyer of the Care Center to keep as many of those jobs under the new ownership as possible, along with other guarantees, including a minimum number of beds and the institution of a private union shop.

We’re aiming to keep the Care Center open by undertaking this process, as the other option we were considering – and rejected – was outright closure.”

Comments on the proposed transfer to the LDC will be taken in person at the July 14 public hearing or can be submitted in writing no later than July 13 via email to Annmarie.martin@co.sullivan.ny.us or via mail to Clerk of the Legislature AnnMarie Martin, 100 North Street, Monticello, NY 12701.

ROBERT A. DOHERTY, CHAIR

MICHAEL BROOKS, VICE CHAIR

ANNMARIE MARTIN, CLERK

TEL: 845-807-0450

COUNTY OF SULLIVAN

OFFICE OF THE LEGISLATURE

SULLIVAN COUNTY GOVERNMENT CENTER

100 NORTH STREET

PO BOX 5012

MONTICELLO, NY 12701

July 6, 2020

Care Center Sale

FACT SHEET

WHAT IS PROPOSED? The Sullivan County Adult Care Center (known as the Care Center at Sunset Lake) is proposed to (1) be transferred to a Local Development Corporation (LDC) in order to (2) be sold to a private operator.

WHY IS THIS BEING PROPOSED? Sullivan County is experiencing serious fiscal challenges and has embarked upon a series of measures to reduce expenses in order to avoid significant tax increases and further layoffs beyond the nearly 80 that have already occurred. This sale is part of that effort and is also justified by the consistent and ongoing losses – upwards of $3.4 million in 2019 alone, plus a $2.7 million subsidy in lieu of Federal aid – incurred at the Care Center. In addition, the LDC is empowered by State law to issue tax-exempt bonds up to the anticipated purchase price of the facility, whose proceeds will be deposited into the County’s coffers to provide financial stability.

BY WHAT AUTHORITY CAN THIS BE UNDERTAKEN? Section 1411(d) of the NYS Not-for-Profit Corporation Law authorizes the legislative body of a county, by resolution, to determine that certain real property of the county not required for use by the county may be sold or leased to an LDC. It also provides that the sale or lease may be on such terms as may be agreed upon by the county and the LDC, without appraisal or public bidding, except that a lease cannot exceed 99 years. A public hearing on such a transfer is required with 10 days’ notice.

WHAT IS THE PROCESS? These are the steps that will be taken over the next year or so:

1. On July 2, 2020, the Sullivan County Legislature unanimously voted to set a public hearing prior to a separate vote to transfer the Care Center to the LDC, which will then lease it back to the County (or a third party) to operate until a sale is concluded. Care Center employees will remain County employees during this period.
2. On July 14, 2020, the Sullivan County Legislature will accept oral public comment on this proposal during an 8 a.m. public hearing at the Government Center’s Hearing Room, 100 North Street, Monticello. Written comments will be accepted up until that day and time and can be emailed to Annmarie.martin@co.sullivan.ny.us or mailed to Clerk of the Legislature AnnMarie Martin, 100 North Street, Monticello, NY 12701.
3. Should legislators wish to proceed with the transfer, a vote on such will be held subsequent to the July 14 hearing.
4. If that vote passes by assent of at least six of the nine legislators, the County Manager will appoint three members of the community to the LDC’s board.
5. The LDC will be empowered to issue bonds up to the anticipated purchase price of the Care Center, and to also seek a real estate firm to market the facility to interested buyers. The proceeds of the bonding will be used to pay for the LDC’s expenses, though the bulk of that amount will be transferred directly to the County to address its fiscal challenges.
6. A buyer will be selected by the LDC based on (in no particular order) offer price, experience with the operation of long- and short-term care facilities, demonstrated quality of care in those facilities, and plans to sustain and enhance the Care Center under its ownership, including the retention of employees and a guaranteed minimum of beds (yet to be determined).
7. The LDC’s board will handle the sale of the Care Center. When ownership is transferred to the buyer, the County’s lease will end and the LDC will be dissolved, with its remaining assets handed over to the County.

WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAGES?

• The Care Center will not be closed or reduced in size.

Existing residents will not be displaced.

• The County will receive much-needed funding at a critical time.
• Taxpayers will no longer be required to subsidize the facility’s operational losses.

Staff will continue to be employed by the County until a sale is completed.

The full range of services will continue to be provided to our community.

• The LDC will ensure the most responsible buyer is selected.
• A significant tax increase, layoffs and/or cuts in services will be avoided.

CARE CENTER INFO AND STATISTICS

256 Sunset Lake Road, Liberty, NY

• County-built and operated since 1990
• 146 beds
• 199 positions, with a payroll totaling $13,632,014 in 2020 (benefits included)
• Services include a full array of medical, nursing, personal care, dietary, physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, podiatry, dental, psychiatry, pharmacy, social, spiritual, recreational and housekeeping.
• Residents and/or families are involved in decisions about care and receive services based on their individual needs.

Expenses in 2019: $18,920,719

• Revenue in 2019: $15,409,966
• Operational Losses in 2019: $3,510,753
• County Match for Intergovernmental Transfer (Federal Aid): $2,737,812
• Total County Subsidy for 2019: $6,248,565
• Total Accumulated Deficit in 2019: $21,750,767

Bill Liblick has made a name for himself of National TV Talk Shows where he spouted his outspoken views from the front row. Now he offers you his opinion in the “MOUTH THAT ROARS” Column in the Sullivan County Post