AUBURN - Cayuga County officials will hold an open forum next week giving residents a chance to respond to the possible sale of a county-owned health agency.
The county is considering selling its operating certificate for the Certified Home Health Agency and it solicited requests for proposals earlier this year. Responses were due late last month and two agencies submitted proposals.
The first agency, Lifetime Care, offered to purchase the operating certificate for $1 million. In addition, the company would be willing to consider hiring employees who lose their job with the county as a result of the sale. In its proposal, Lifetime Care indicated that nurses and other employees who provide direct patient care would be assured job security. The company also indicated it will lease the county's facility and take over all accounts receivable as well as purchase some of the county's computers.
The second proposal, which came from St. Joseph's Hospital Health Center, offers to purchase the county's operating certificate for the home health agency for $200,000.
While this agency has agreed to accept applications from current county employees, the proposal states that future employment with the company will be determined based on job openings and qualifications.
Chairman of the Legislature Peter Tortorici, R-Auburn, said next week's forum will give people a chance to address the possible sale of the agency.
“We need to give the public the opportunity to voice their concerns and we as a Legislature need to hear them,” he said.
The public hearing will help legislators make this important decision, he said.
Those who wish to speak will need to sign in before the meeting and limit their comments to five minutes.
The county is still gathering information about long-term data, age groups, programs and nursing visits and will probably hold another meeting to discuss those findings, Tortorici said. At this point, restructuring the agency is not completely off the table but would require a complete revamp of it. If the county considers pursuing this, more research will be needed.
Although the proposals have been submitted, Tortorici said there is no tentative timeline for when a decision will be made. The county will work on this “as long as it takes to make sure that we're doing the right thing and providing a good service to this community.”
Tortorici believes next week's public hearing will be an important piece of information that will play a part in the Legislature's decision.
“My expectations are that we make sure that we are listening to not only the employees but to the public and make sure that we're addressing all the concerns and trying to find the answers,” he said. “The more people you listen to, the more suggestions or ideas that we can get, will only help us in making a good decision.”
Staff writer Gitana Mirochnik can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 237 or gitana.mirochnik@lee.net
The first agency, Lifetime Care, offered to purchase the operating certificate for $1 million. In addition, the company would be willing to consider hiring employees who lose their job with the county as a result of the sale. In its proposal, Lifetime Care indicated that nurses and other employees who provide direct patient care would be assured job security. The company also indicated it will lease the county's facility and take over all accounts receivable as well as purchase some of the county's computers.
The second proposal, which came from St. Joseph's Hospital Health Center, offers to purchase the county's operating certificate for the home health agency for $200,000.
While this agency has agreed to accept applications from current county employees, the proposal states that future employment with the company will be determined based on job openings and qualifications.
Chairman of the Legislature Peter Tortorici, R-Auburn, said next week's forum will give people a chance to address the possible sale of the agency.
“We need to give the public the opportunity to voice their concerns and we as a Legislature need to hear them,” he said.
The public hearing will help legislators make this important decision, he said.
Those who wish to speak will need to sign in before the meeting and limit their comments to five minutes.
The county is still gathering information about long-term data, age groups, programs and nursing visits and will probably hold another meeting to discuss those findings, Tortorici said. At this point, restructuring the agency is not completely off the table but would require a complete revamp of it. If the county considers pursuing this, more research will be needed.
Although the proposals have been submitted, Tortorici said there is no tentative timeline for when a decision will be made. The county will work on this “as long as it takes to make sure that we're doing the right thing and providing a good service to this community.”
Tortorici believes next week's public hearing will be an important piece of information that will play a part in the Legislature's decision.
“My expectations are that we make sure that we are listening to not only the employees but to the public and make sure that we're addressing all the concerns and trying to find the answers,” he said. “The more people you listen to, the more suggestions or ideas that we can get, will only help us in making a good decision.”
Staff writer Gitana Mirochnik can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 237 or gitana.mirochnik@lee.net
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cvdrn93 wrote on Apr 1, 2009 9:33 PM:
Shame on you again Spam, you should really take a day and go on home visit with a county nurse and then a day with a private agency nurse you'll change your tune, I work in home care (not in Cayuga County) I used to work for a private agency and the focus was all on the money and not the patient and thats not what I went into nursing for then I applied and was hired at a county CHHA and I've loved every 15 years of it, I hated that private agency job it was all about the money, now I can actually go into a home and focus on the patient and his/her health needs and give them quality nursing care in their home. "
maggie8 wrote on Apr 1, 2009 6:58 PM:
Who said the CHHA is draining the taxpayers? The CHHA has been making money for years and the surplus goes into the general fund to pay for other departments overspending!! "
spam wrote on Apr 1, 2009 6:15 AM: