New York State Attorney General Tish James held a hearing Monday in Troy on the potential closure of the Burdett Birth Center. After more than 30 individuals testified, what happens next?
Democratic Schenectady County legislator Michelle Ostrelich is a co-founder of the Schenectady Coalition for Healthcare Access.
"I came across the river to come and testify," Ostrelich said, "Because what happens to Burdett happened to Bellevue, we've noticed a pattern. When St. Peter’s and Trinity move into our communities, expand, and start to control our health care, our reproductive care is limited, and now we fear are going to be eliminated."
Tisha Graham is a Certified Professional Midwife and Doula who was glad to see Democratic Attorney General James attend the hearing.
"And as she was leaving, before the last panel was heard, she left and said, 'You know, I stand with you. I stand in spirit with you.' And I think she said 'we'll work to keep the birth center open.' And of course, that would be awesome," said Graham.
A spokesman for James says "You can read that as an effort to ensure the audience and people watching on livestream know this is an issue the AG cares deeply about and that she will ensure her staff uses the tools at their disposal to do what can be done to keep Burdett open."
Ostrelich noted "Burdett has 900 births a year. And because our communities are so interconnected in the Capital Region, it means that those births will need to be absorbed by St. Peter's, Albany Med and certainly Bellevue, which means residents in Schenectady will have less choice for care."
If a closure is announced, Graham thinks that might push James to take action.
"I wonder, the impact of the attorney general being here. It just occurs to me as a question as to whether or not they're looking into something that may be happening that's illegal, because that's their purview. That's their domain. The attorney general, of course, looks into whether or not agencies or institutions are following the law or breaking the law. And I'm just curious to know whether or not after all this testimony, she is finding, you know, enough evidence that perhaps some laws were broken, some promises were made and not kept, if there is something that she is able to bring to bear on this decision that the Department of Health will make. It's not the attorney general who will make the decision. It's the New York State Department of Health, but maybe there is some legal issue that she is, you know, looking to use to help keep the birth center open," said Graham.
At the hearing, it was noted that St. Peter's Health Partners submitted an eight-page statement saying it plans to continue prenatal care in Troy and that even after the closure of Burdett, the Samaritan Hospital emergency room will remain open to mothers in labor.
Two representatives from the New York State Department of Health attended the hearing. A DOH spokesperson says St. Peter’s Health Partners submitted a Certificate of Need application on June 20th. To date, a required Closure Plan has not yet been submitted. St. Peter’s Health Partners has also agreed to conduct a Health Equity Impact Assessment. The spokesperson adds the process will "take time and is not imminent."
