It is important to write elected officials protesting the plans to close Muhlenberg Regional Medical Center. Volunteers with the Save Muhlenberg campaign have submitted form letters which you may find online here and here. (See printing directions at end of this story.)
When writing, it is very important to include ways that Muhlenberg has been important to you -- whether as a patient, staff member, Auxiliary member or volunteer. Point out how your life will be changed without Muhlenberg.
You can also mention such things as the impact closing Muhlenberg will have on all those who work there, and all the doctors' and health-related offices that will no longer have a reason to be located in Plainfield.
Federal, state and local contacts for the Save Muhlenberg campaign are listed below.
The NJ Commissioner of Health and Human Services, Heather Howard, is directly involved with the application for closure. She should be especially contacted, as should Gov. Jon Corzine.
Elected officials from the state's 22nd Legislative District (Plainfield, Fanwood, Scotch Plains, North Plainfield, Dunellen, Middlesex and Green Brook) and 18th Legislative District (South Plainfield, Edison) are also important.
Letters to our Congressional delegation -- both Senators and Representatives -- are important because the chief problem is failure by the FEDERAL government to adequately fund charity care reimbursements to local hospitals such as Muhlenberg. That is where the REAL fix can be applied. (Rep. Pallone's district includes Plainfield; Rep. Ferguson covers all the other affected towns.)
Locally, letters may be sent to Plainfield Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs and members of the City Council.
(If you send an email, please CC (or BCC) me at dandamon@comcast.net and I will post the letters on the Save Muhlenberg website. Thanks -- Dan)
PRINTING ONLINE FORM LETTERS: Look for the 'iPaper' link at the top of the window for the document -- it's toward the left just above the document. Click on it and select the 'Print' option. You will get a neat one-page letter you can address, sign and mail.
| C O N T A C T S | |
FEDERAL | |
Sen. Frank Lautenberg 825A Hart Senate Office Bldg Washington, DC 20510 (202) 224-8929 or 1 Gateway Center, 1st Floor Newark, NJ 07102 (973) 639-8700 online contact form: http://lautenberg.senate.gov/contact/ | Sen. Robert Menendez 502 Hart Senate Office Bldg Washington, DC 20510 (202) 224-4744 or 1 Gateway Center, 1lth Floor Newark, NJ 07102 (973) 645-3030 online contact form: http://menendez.senate.gov/contact/contact.cfm |
Rep. Frank Pallone 420 Cannon House Office Bldg Washington, DC 20515 (202) 225-4671 or 67/69 Church Street / Kilmer Square New Brunswick, NJ 08901 (732) 249-8892 email: frank.pallone@mail.house.gov | Rep. Mike Ferguson 214 Cannon House Office Bldg Washington, DC 20515 (202) 225-5361 or 45 Mountain Blvd, Bldg D, Ste 1 Warren, NJ 07059 (908) 757-7835 email: mike.ferguson@mail.house.gov |
STATE | |
Gov. Jon Corzine Office of the Governor P. O. Box 001 Trenton, NJ 08625 (609) 292-6000 online contact form: http://www.nj.gov/governor/govmail.html | Commissioner Heather Howard Dept of Health and Senior Services P. O. Box 360 Trenton, NJ 08625 (609) 292-7837 | Toll-free (800) 367-6543 online contact form: http://www.nj.gov/health/commiss/contact.shtml |
22nd Legislative District Sen. Nicholas Scutari 1514 E. St. Georges Avenue, 2nd Fl Linden, NJ 07036 (908) 587-0404 email: | 18th Legislative District Sen. Barbara Buono Two Lincoln Hwy, Ste 401 Edison, NJ 08820 (732) 205-1372 email: |
Asm. Jerry Green 17 Watchung Avenue Plainfield, NJ 07060 (908) 561-5757 | fax: email: asmgreen@njleg.org | Asm. Peter Barnes III 3 Stephenville Pkwy, Ste 2E Edison, NJ 08820 (732) 548-1406 email: asmbarnes@njleg.org |
Asw. Linda Stender 1801 East Second St., 2nd Fl Scotch Plains, NJ 07076 (908) 668-1900 email: aswstender@njleg.org | Asm. Patrick Diegnan, Jr. 908 Oak Tree Avenue, Unit P South Plainfield, NJ 07080 (908) 757-1677 email: asmdiegnan@njleg.org |
LOCAL | |
Hon. Sharon Robinson-Briggs Mayor's Office, City Hall 515 Watchung Avenue Plainfield, NJ 07060 | Address Individual City Councilors % City Clerk, City Hall 515 Watchung Avenue Plainfield, NJ 07060 |
| Councilors Rashid Burney - Wards 2/3 At-Large Linda Carter - Wards 1/4 At-Large Don Davis - Ward 3 Harold Gibson - At-Large (Council President) William Reid - Ward 1 Elliott Simmons - Ward 4 Cory Storch - Ward 2 | |
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