FAQs
- Who is trying to open a hospital at the former Pascack Valley Hospital site?
Hackensack University Medical Center, in a joint venture with a Texas-based for-profit investor, Legacy Hospital Partners. - Isn’t it always better to have more hospitals in a region?
No. Introducing a new acute-care, inpatient hospital, complete with all of the administration, overhead and equipment in a county already identified as having too many beds makes resources redundant and compromises healthcare quality. - What is Hackensack University Medical Center?
Hackensack University Medical Center (HUMC) is a 775-bed teaching and research hospital affiliated with the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ). Established in 1888, HUMC offers a full spectrum of healthcare services for northern New Jersey communities. HUMC is New Jersey’s largest provider of inpatient and outpatient services and is the fourth largest hospital in the nation based on admissions. - What is Legacy Hospital Partners?
Legacy Hospital Partners, Inc. (LHP) is a newly created investment company that exists to purchase stakes in and operate hospitals in order to turn a profit for its investors. Based in Plano, Texas, and bankrolled principally by a Canadian pension fund eager for financial returns, it is run by former executives of for-profit hospital operators Triad Hospitals and Columbia HCA, which was the target of a widely publicized federal investigation into Medicare and Medicaid fraud in recent years. Their investment arrangement with Hackensack University Medical represents just one of 20 hospital acquisitions LHP plan to make in the next 5 years for the stated goal of making $3.5 billion in profit. - What is the process by which this will be approved or denied?
Hackensack University Medical Center (HUMC) has applied for a Certificate of Need (CoN) to establish a new, for-profit hospital in Westwood at the former PVH site. If successful, the proposal will have a detrimental impact on area hospitals and weaken the entire healthcare system in the region. The fundamental premise behind the CoN process is demonstrating need and managing costly healthcare resources. According to the state’s own experts, there is an excess amount of beds in hospitals in the region, thus there is no need for the venture. - Isn’t it a good thing to have a for-profit hospital in the region?
No. The vast majority of hospitals in New Jersey are community-based, not-for-profit entities governed by local boards and are accountable to the communities they serve. Dollars generated through operations are invested back into the hospital for new equipment, facilities and program development. Conversely, for-profit hospitals are beholden to investors and not accountable to the communities they serve. Profits generated through operations are returned to investors and not necessarily invested back into the community. Developing a new for-profit hospital in a region that has excess capacity will cause irreparable harm to the region’s fragile health care system and ultimately affect the quality of care delivered.
