HOBOKEN AND BEYOND — The city of Hoboken hopes to — by the end of this month — transfer its hospital, Hoboken University Medical Center, from being run by the state to being owned by a company called Holdco that currently co-owns Bayonne Medical Center.
Mayor Dawn Zimmer has said that the sale of the hospital to a private owner is necessary to save it from closing, while others disagree that it has to be sold to Holdco (see cover story in this weekend’s Reporter to find out details of the negotiations and related issues. The story will appear here at hudsonreporter.com starting Sunday).
Before the hospital can be sold, the sale must get state approval. The city also must hold a public hearing.
On Friday afternoon, the city announced that the state Health Planning Board has scheduled a July 21 hearing.
According to a city announcement:
The State Health Planning Board (the Board) will be holding a public hearing concerning the Certificate of Need application submitted to the Department of Health and Senior Services for the Transfer of Ownership of Hoboken University Medical Center to HUMC Holdco, under common ownership of Bayonne Medical Center.
The Board invites the public to comment on the application. All those wishing to make oral comments to the Board are invited to attend the public hearing on this application on Thursday, July 21, 2011. Comments will be limited to three minutes per person, although written comments may also be submitted at the same time. The Board will take comments from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. The hearing will be at Our Lady of Grace Parish Hall, 422 Willow Avenue.
For more on the issues involved, see this weekend’s newspaper.