No word on Robinson-Briggs acceptance of Muhlenberg oversight yet

Mayor Robinson-Briggs was to get back to Commissioner Heather Howard by the end of the week (September 26th), answering the Commissioner's questions about the proposed Community Advisory Group (CAG) and whether she intended to take up the role of monitor. (See more HERE.)

As of Saturday, no word has been given of the Mayor's reponse, and there is no information available on the city's website.

Robinson-Briggs may take on managing Muhlenberg monitor

Commissioner Heather Howard is proposing that responsibility for the oversight group outlined in her conditions for Solaris' closure of Muhlenberg be handed over to the office of Plainfield Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs, according to a report in Tuesday's Courier.

Howard asked for specifics of the group's makeup and meeting schedules, which Mayor Robinson-Briggs said would be forthcoming by the end of the week.

The Mayor intends to bring the matter up with the Council -- which she refers to as 'our partners in this' -- when it meets in a special session she has called for Wednesday to present the Administration's proposed FY2009 budget.

Read the full story here: "Mayor's office may take on managing advisory group in Muhlenberg closure".

Report: As economy tanks, consumers cut health spending

The Wall Street Journal reports that a study finds many are cutting back on health care as the economy sours.

Income strictures, combined with higher copays, are leading many to forego doctor's visits, testing and even how often they fill their prescriptions.

For the first time in at least a decade, year-over-year spending dropped -- in the second quarter by nearly 2%.

Read the full story here: "Consumers Cut Health Spending, As Economic Downturn Takes Toll".

Muhlenberg Foundation: Plainfield-focused and independent

Comforting news in today's Courier: The Muhlenberg Foundation is independent of Solaris and will continue to raise and dispense monies for Plainfield-related health care activities and issues, according to board president Oliver Anderson.

The story by reporter Mark Spivey should help quell concerns that Solaris has control of the foundation, though somehow the many people involved in 'Restore Muhlenberg' got short shrift while one person was spotlighted.

Read the full story here: "Muhlenberg hospital donations will go to community".

Hospitals peddle 'fake news'

The government isn't the only one out there peddling 'fake news' -- spin-filled stories peddled to promote a specific point of view and published with 'lite' or no editing or attribution by the news media, print and TV.

Writing in In These Times, Emily Udell reports on the troubling trend of newspapers allowing hospital public relations offices to write articles for their health pages -- without attribution.

Read more here: "Hospital Flacks Spread Fake News".

Muhlenberg tops JFK in state performance review

Muhlenberg's Overall Score. (Click to enlarge image.)

The release of the state's 5th annual hospital performance report has some interesting comparisons between Muhlenberg and JFK.

JKF's Overall Score. (Click to enlarge image.)

Here are links to the individual report cards: Muhlenberg | JFK |.

Read the full story in the --

Courier: "Central Jersey hospitals among those to rank high on annual report cards"
Ledger: "Annual grading shows Jersey hospitals' care on upswing"

Muhlenberg Closure: 2nd Appeal filed by POP, Restore Muhlenberg

Independently of the city of Plainfield, POP and Restore Muhlenberg have filed an appeal of the closure of Muhlenberg by Solaris Health System.

Writing in today's Courier, Mark Spivey reports on how POP attorney Bennet Zurofsky's appeal differs from the city's -- alleging a breach of fiduciary responsibilities by the Muhlenberg and Solaris boards.

Read the complete story here: "Second appeal filed in protest of decision to close Plainfield's Muhlenberg Hospital".

ERs: Patients often confused about treatment, care

Most ER patients leave the hospital understanding neither the treatment they received or how to take care of themselves once they get home, writes Laurie Tarkan in the New York Times.

This often leads to complications that land them back in the ER.

Read the original story here: "E.R. Patients Often Left Confused After Visits".

Solaris confident in face of Plainfield's notice of appeal

The city's notice to appeal Commissioner Heather Howard's closure of Muhlenberg made the front page of the Courier again today.

Dan Damon posts a link to both today's and yesterday's stories on the appeal over at Plainfield Today, along with his assessment of how serious and well-prepared Mayor Robinson-Briggs actually is.

Read more here.

Dr. Fertig's OpEd:

Dr. Brian Fertig's passionate OpEd piece from last Sunday's Courier ("Closure of Muhlenberg demonstrates deeper crisis") finally was put online this afternoon.

This is a must-read for all those who cannot believe the state would go against its own guidelines in shutting down Muhlenberg.

Read the original here. It is also permanently archived it here.

Disaster Preparedness: Muhlenberg area written off?

How unprepared are we for a mass disaster?

With the closure of Muhlenberg, the emergency preparedness plan for Plainfield and the surrounding communities needs a radical update. Will it be done, or is the state just willing to write off 135,000 people without batting an eye?

The current issues of Emergency Management magazine looks at hospital preparedness --

With 9/11 seven years past, hospitals still aren't ready to handle the surge of patients that would come during another mass casualty event, despite billions of dollars spent, according to experts in the field.

Since September 2001, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has distributed nearly $4 billion to state and local hospital preparedness efforts.

Nevertheless, officials say hospital emergency departments and emergency medical services (EMS) would be unable to handle a mass casualty event... CONTINUE reading.

Solaris: Answers to State's Questions (not publicly available for June hearing)

Thanks to the sleuthing of Plainfield's own Nancy Piwowar, a letter detailing Solaris' response to questions by the State -- which should have been available for the public in the Library's files, but was never received by them before the June public hearing. Thanks to DWX for scanning and converting them to PDF.

Read the letter below. (To print out, click on the little iPaper icon at the top left of the document window below.)

Solaris: Answers to the State's Questions, 5/12/2008 - Upload a Document to Scribd

Read this document on Scribd: Solaris: Answers to the State's Questions, 5/12/2008

Notice of Public Hearing: $169M bonds for Solaris

The Legal Notice for the hearing on the proposed bonds for Solaris was run in the Trenton Times on Saturday, September 6.

Am posting below, and breaking it out into paragraphs for easier reading.

NEW JERSEY HEALTH CARE FACILITIES FINANCING AUTHORITY

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING

Notice is hereby given that the New Jersey Health Care Facilities Financing Authority (the "Authority") will hold a public hearing on September 25, 2008, at 10:00 a.m., in the offices of the Authority at 22 South Clinton Avenue, Trenton, New Jersey, with respect to the financing requested by the following institutions:

OWNER AND OPERATOR: (i) The Community Hospital Group, Inc., t/a JFK Medical Center ("JFK"); (ii) Hartwyck at Oak Tree, Inc. ("Hartwyck"); and (iii) Muhlenberg Regional Medical Center, Inc. ("Muhlenberg")

MAXIMUM AGGREGATE PRINCIPAL AMOUNT OF TAX-EXEMPT BONDS ("Series 2008B Bonds"): $169,000,000, as described below.

PROJECT: The project to be financed consists of

(1) various capital improvements to JFK Medical Center, including, but not limited to, expansion of inpatient bed capacity and unit renovations, emergency room expansion, cardiac catheterization lab suite expansion, operating room renovations and expansion, renovation of existing space for hyperbaric wound center, relocation of support departments, conversion of HVAC system and other necessary expansions, renovations and improvements, and the refinancing of various series of bonds issued on behalf of, and other indebtedness of, JFK, Hartwyck and Muhlenberg, as described below, all in connection with the termination of the provision of hospital acute care services at Muhlenberg Regional Medical Center and pursuant to the State's Hospital Asset Transformation Program,

(2) payment of capitalized interest on a portion of the Series 2008B Bonds and

(3) payment of costs of issuance of the Series 2008B Bonds. It is expected that a portion of the proceeds of the Series 2008B Bonds will be applied to refinance all or a portion of the following:

(i) $22,200,000 New Jersey Health Care Facilities Financing Authority Revenue Bonds, JFK Systems Obligated Group Issue, Series 1993 (the "1993 Bonds") The proceeds of the 1993 Bonds were loaned to Hartwyck for the purpose of financing (a) the acquisition of Edison Estates Rehabilitation and Convalescent Center (the "Center"), (b) certain renovations and improvements to the Center, (c) a deposit to the Debt Service Reserve Fund and
(iv) costs of issuance.

(ii) $30,100,000 New Jersey Health Care Facilities Financing Authority Revenue Bonds, JFK Health Systems Obligated Group Issue, Series 1995 (the "1995 JFK Bonds") The proceeds of the 1995 JFK Bonds were loaned to JFK to (a) finance (i) the construction of an addition to house new operating rooms, lobby, coffee and gift shops, administrative offices and a medical/surgical bed unit and renovations to the existing facilities including operating rooms and obstetrical areas; (ii) construction of an addition to the rehabilitation facility to house out-patient services and renovation of existing treatment and service areas; (iii) the acquisition of certain major moveable equipment; (b) fund capitalized interest for the 1995 JFK Bonds; (c) fund a Debt Service Reserve Fund for the 1995 JFK Bonds and (d) pay certain costs of issuance incidental to the issuance of the 1995 JFK Bonds.

(iii) $53,205,000 New Jersey Health Care Facilities Financing Authority Revenue and Refunding Bonds JFK Medical Center/Hartwyck at Oak Tree Obligated Group Issue, Series 1998 (the "1998 JFK - Hartwyck Bonds") The proceeds of the 1998 JFK - Hartwyck Bonds were used by JFK and Hartwyck (the "Institutions") to: (a) refinance a loan from First Union National Bank (the "First Union Loan") used to acquire major moveable equipment and property, (b) renovate existing facilities of the Institutions; (c) currently refund the Authority's Revenue Bonds, Intercare Health Systems, Inc. - J.F.K. Medical Center Issue, Series 1988 Bonds (the "1988 JFK Bonds"); (d) advance refund the Authority's Revenue Bonds, JFK Health System Obligated Group Issue, Series 1991 Bonds; and (e) pay certain costs incidental to the issuance and sale of the 1998 JFK - Hartwyck Bonds.

(iv) $25,990,000 New Jersey Health Care Facilities Financing Authority Revenue and Refunding Bonds Muhlenberg Regional Medical Center Issue, Series 2000 (the "2000 Muhlenberg Bonds") The proceeds of the 2000 Muhlenberg Bonds were loaned to Muhlenberg for the purpose of (i) purchasing major moveable equipment which was part of Muhlenberg's 2000 Capital Budget (the "2000 Muhlenberg Project"), (ii) currently refunding the Authority's Revenue Bonds, Muhlenberg Regional Medical Center Issue, Series B; and (iii) paying costs incidental to the issuance and sale of the 2000 Muhlenberg Bonds.

(v) $20,000,000 New Jersey Health Care Facilities Financing Authority Revenue Bonds (Variable Rate Composite Program - the Community Hospital Group, Inc. Project) Series 2003 A-1 (the "2003 Bonds") The proceeds of the 2003 Bonds were loaned to JFK for the purpose of financing the costs of the following: (i) land and building improvements, (ii) various items of equipment for hospital use, including, but not limited to: mobile MRIs, air conditioning replacements, elevator upgrades, linear accelerator, uninterrupted power supply system for computer room, sleep lab-rooms, chapel renovations, operating room renovations, maternity expansion, and furniture and equipment for use in various hospital departments, including, fire alarm replacements, treadmills, beds, radiology and imaging, monitoring systems, network infrastructure, Legacy (X-ray) System, mammography system, MRI clinical projection computer system (the "2003 Project") and (iii) paying costs associated with the issuance of the 2003 Bonds.

(vi) $18,000,000 New Jersey Health Care Facilities Financing Authority Revenue Bonds, Variable Rate Composite (COMP) Program, Series 2005 A-3 (the "2005 Bonds") The proceeds of the 2005 Bonds were loaned to JFK to finance the costs of building improvements and various items of equipment, including renovations to the Access Center, the dietary department, the radiology department, a nursing unit, and major equipment purchases in the area of information technology as well as furniture and equipment for use in various hospital departments.

(vii) $6,500,000 line of credit from Wachovia Bank, National Association ("Wachovia") to JFK (the "JFK Line of Credit") made available to JFK pursuant to a Loan Agreement by and between Wachovia and JFK, dated as of July 27, 2006. Amounts available under the JFK Line of Credit were applied to fund capital expenditures at JFK Medical Center. PROJECT LOCATIONS: (i) 65 James Street, Township of Edison, County of Middlesex, New Jersey; (ii) (a) 10 Brunswick Road, Township of Edison, County of Middlesex, New Jersey, (b) 2048 Oak Tree Road, Township of Edison, County of Middlesex, New Jersey and (iii) Park Avenue & Randolph Road, City of Plainfield, County of Union, New Jersey.

FINANCING PLAN: In order to finance the Project described above, the Authority will issue one or more series of bonds on a tax-exempt and/or taxable basis. At the above-referenced meeting of the Authority, members of the public may appear in person or by representative to provide information and make statements concerning the foregoing. The bonds to be issued will be special obligations of the Authority payable solely out of amounts received pursuant to the State Contract. [Emphasis added -- DD]

THE STATE OF NEW JERSEY (THE "STATE") SHALL NOT BE OBLIGATED TO PAY, AND NEITHER THE FAITH AND CREDIT NOR TAXING POWER OF THE STATE SHALL BE PLEDGED TO THE PAYMENT OF, THE PRINCIPAL OR REDEMPTION PRICE, IF ANY, OF OR INTEREST ON SUCH BONDS. THE BONDS SHALL BE A SPECIAL, LIMITED OBLIGATION OF THE AUTHORITY, PAYABLE SOLELY OUT OF THE REVENUES OR OTHER RECEIPTS, FUNDS OR MONEYS OF THE AUTHORITY PLEDGED UNDER THE RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING SUCH BONDS AND FROM ANY AMOUNTS OTHERWISE AVAILABLE UNDER SUCH RESOLUTION FOR THE PAYMENT OF THE BONDS. THE BONDS SHALL NEVER CONSTITUTE A CHARGE AGAINST THE GENERAL CREDIT OF THE AUTHORITY. THE AUTHORITY HAS NO TAXING POWER. THE BONDS SHALL NOT BE A DEBT OR LIABILITY OF THE STATE OR ANY AGENCY OR INSTRUMENTALITY THEREOF (OTHER THAN THE AUTHORITY TO THE LIMITED EXTENT SET FORTH IN THE RESOLUTION), EITHER LEGAL, MORAL OR OTHERWISE, AND NOTHING IN THE AUTHORITY'S ACT SHALL BE CONSTRUED TO AUTHORIZE THE AUTHORITY TO INCUR ANY INDEBTEDNESS ON BEHALF OF OR IN ANY WAY OBLIGATE THE STATE OR ANY POLITICAL SUBDIVISION THEREOF.

This notice is published in accordance with the public notice requirements of Section 147(f) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended.

NEW JERSEY HEALTH CARE FACILITIES FINANCING AUTHORITY

Fee $101.12

9/6/08 Times

Read the online original HERE.

Letter: Carolyn Eklund on endangered patients

The Rev. Carolyn Eklund, pastor of Grace Episcopal Church and Muhlenberg activist, has a disturbing letter in today's Courier detailing issues she has had in tracking down elderly and frail parishioners when they have been hospitalized. There are issues with records. And with tracking down exactly what hospital a disoriented elderly person was taken to.

This is hardly how we were promised it would be.

Read the letter here: "Without Muhlenberg, fragile and needy endangered".

Without Muhlenberg, is Plainfield prepared for a disaster?

As has been pointed out before, Muhlenberg was a key element in the disaster preparedness plans for western Union County worked out with the state in the tabletop exercises of 2005.

The closure of the hospital has put retooling the plan in many peoples' minds.

Today's Courier carries a story concerning a survey Rutgers will be conducting in central New Jersey on disaster preparedness.

Time to put pressure on Plainfield to update its plan?

Read the story here: "Rutgers survey to focus on emergency preparedness in central Jersey".

Muhlenberg: Green gripes to Howard about Solaris

In a front page story, the Courier's Mark Spivey covers the meeting in Trenton yesterday by Assemblyman Jerry Green and Plainfield Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs with Commissioner Heather Howard and Solaris officials.

Read the full story here: "Plainfield, Solaris air differences at Muhlenberg meeting".

As an aside, parsing the weasel words of Solaris spokesperson Weiss is becoming an art form. You can infer a great deal about what Solaris is planning from paying very close attention to how his statements are couched.

Abdul-Haqq: Muhlenberg fight must continue

Plainfield Board of Ed member Rasheed Abdul-Haqq has a lengthy letter to the editor in today's Courier.

Read more here: "Fight for Muhlenberg needs to continue".