Leaders Show Support For CarePoint Health Non-Profit Conversion

Press release from CarePoint Health:

Jan. 10, 2022

Numerous Hudson County elected officials, medical professionals and community leaders showed their overwhelming support for CarePoint Health System’s transition to a non-profit organization at a public hearing of the State Health Planning Board held on Tuesday night at Christ Hospital. The hearing concerned CarePoint’s pending certificate of need applications that would allow it to fully complete its transition to a non-profit if approved by the Department of Health.

“The outpouring of support for CarePoint’s transition to a non-profit at this meeting is proof of the strong feeling in the community that our three safety net hospitals must be given approval by the Department of Health to complete this process and continue serving the needs of Hudson County,” said President and CEO of CarePoint Health, Achintya Moulick, MD, MBA, M.Ch.

“CarePoint provides a critical level of care to underserved populations and leads the state in ease of access to charitable and affordable care, as recognized by the Lown’s institute which ranked CarePoint as the number 1 hospital system in the U.S. Hospital beds should be most accessible and concentrated where the poorest and sickest reside - as they need care the most. The need for the state and DOH to support these hospitals, which continue to care for a population that is 80% African American and Hispanic, with a high percentage of uninsured and Medicaid patients, especially at Christ Hospital and Hoboken University Medical Center, where they make up approximately 60% of the current patient mix. The transition to nonprofit control opens up a wide array of funding and grant opportunities to support Hudson County’s underserved patients moving forward that are also not otherwise available under for profit status.”

Speakers at the meeting who testified in favor of the CarePoint application included Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop, Bayonne Mayor Jimmy Davis, Jersey City Ward C Councilman Richard Boggiano, Hoboken City Councilman Jim Doyle, Hudson County Commissioner Anthony Romano, Bayonne City Council President Gary La Pelusa, Bayonne 2nd Ward Councilwoman Jacqueline Weimmer, Hoboken Municipal Hospital Authority Chair Toni Tomarazzo, President and CEO of United Way Hudson County Daniel Altilio, Pastor Jose Lopez and more. Letters of support were also sent in from Assemblyman Raj Mukheri, Assemblywoman Angela V. McKnight, Jersey City Council President Joyce E. Watterman, Ward B Councilwoman Mira Prinz-Arey and Ward D Councilman Yousef J. Saleh.

“Christ Hospital has been a cornerstone in our community for decades in serving some of the most vulnerable residents here in Jersey City,” said Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop. “CarePoint’s application to become a nonprofit is critical for the long term growth of Christ Hospital and the other hospitals in the system, making them more viable, stronger, more competitive, more in line with the other hospitals in the region and a better overall option to serve the Jersey City community.”
CarePoint Health has made major strides in bringing quality healthcare to the people in Northern New Jersey. In the past two years CarePoint has gained national recognition as the No. 1 ranked hospital for equitable care in the US by the prestigious Lown Institute and 4th ranked safety net hospital by Washington Journal. It has also announced partnerships with national leaders in healthcare delivery like Rothman Orthopaedics and Columbia University.

“Healthcare should not be about dollars and cents, it should be about common sense and Bayonne needs a full service hospital -- anything short of that is unacceptable,” said Bayonne Mayor Jimmy Davis. “If CarePoint, the entity that operates Bayonne Medical Center, is allowed to change its status from profit to nonprofit we have a chance to get back to a Bayonne-centric, community based hospital. Residents of Bayonne will be invited to serve on the hospital board and we will have a voice in the hospital’s operations. To me, this is the most attractive aspect of this change in the form of ownership. Our hospital should not be just another business in town — it should be the town’s business.”

Following the public hearing, the State Health Planning Board will vote on a recommendation regarding the CarePoint applications for certificates of need, with the final determination made by the Commissioner of the Department of Health.

This press release was produced by CarePoint Health. The views expressed here are the author's own.