SUNY reaches deal with Fortis to sell LICH

Dan Goldberg

SUNY has reached an agreement in principle with Fortis Property Group for the sale of Long Island College Hospital, a deal that would allow the state to finally walk away from the financially troubled hospital, but would not provide for a full-service hospital on the site.

Fortis, a Brooklyn development company partnered with N.Y.U. Langone Medical Center and Lutheran Medical Center, plans to offer a mix of medical services, a freestanding emergency department, and would also build new luxury condominiums.

The agreement ensures that the hospital will not close its doors and that some element of care would remain at the Cobble Hill site, a crucial point for the de Blasio administration, which has been working behind the scenes to reach a deal.

But what LICH is now slated to become is a shadow of its former self. The 250-plus bed hospital will be transformed into a freestanding emergency department with fewer than two dozen observational beds.

http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/health-care/2014/06/8547206/suny-reaches-deal-fortis-sell-lich