President of New York City’s Health and Hospitals Corporation Looks to Expand, Improve Services

Dr. Benjamin Chu, the new president of New York City's Health and Hospitals Corporation, which lost $72 million last fiscal year and is expected to lose approximately $200 million this fiscal year, is attempting to add programs and improve service at the corporation's hospitals and clinics, the New York Times reports. The proposed expansion comes as Mayor Michael Bloomberg (R) has announced plans to cut more than $4 billion from the city's budget. The corporation, the nation's largest public hospital system, runs 11 hospitals and 85 community clinics. Among city providers, it serves the largest share of the city's uninsured patients, many of whom do not qualify for any public insurance. About 10% of the corporation's hospital patients and 30% of its clinic patients are uninsured. In an attempt to bring in more revenue, Chu plans to "push for a bigger market share" in some areas of care and to "attract and keep paying patients" by adding new clinical services "backed up by aggressive marketing." Among Chu's plans are screening programs for colon cancer and cardiac diseases, fund-raising efforts "that appeal to wealthy donors," lobbying for increased reimbursements from government insurance programs and "look[ing] carefully at how the corporation does its billing." Chu said, "The truth of the matter is there are a lot of services needed in the community and it is up to us to help them get them. If you cut and cut and you don't build services, you miss out on not only providing services but also on possible revenue providers that help support the mission of the hospitals" (Steinhauer, New York Times, 3/11).