BREAKING: Another reprieve for Brooklyn’s LICH; Judge issues temporary restraining order
Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Johnny Lee Baynes issued a temporary restraining order on Monday, April 1 that bars the New York State Department of Health from shutting down Long Island College Hospital (LICH) until at least May 2.
Saying that financial troubles at LICH threatened SUNY Downstate, the SUNY board of trustees voted on March 19 to close LICH, a Downstate affiliate. The March 19 vote was the board’s second vote; Justice Baynes ruled on March 14 that the original board meeting didn’t comply with the Open Meetings Law.
On Monday, Judge Baynes ordered SUNY to rescind the LICH closing plan until SUNY subjects the plan to “adequate review,” as required under New York Education Law 356. He criticized several aspects of the plan, and called Dr. John Williams’ recommendation to close LICH “arbitrary and capricious, an abuse of discretion and a violation of lawful procedure.” [A full analysis of this order follows at brooklyneagle.com]