PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Lois Uttley, Health Policy Advocate on Hospital Inequities in New York City
3:20:16
·
156 sec
Lois Uttley, a health policy advocate with over 30 years of experience, warns about the worsening inequities in access to hospital care across New York City due to hospital closings. She highlights the disparities in hospital bed availability between different boroughs and neighborhoods, emphasizing the need for equitable distribution of hospital capacity.
- Queens and Brooklyn have the lowest number of hospital beds per thousand people, while Manhattan has more than twice the city-wide average.
- Within Manhattan, stark disparities exist between affluent areas like the Upper East Side and poorer, more diverse areas like the Lower East Side.
- Uttley calls for action from state and city policymakers to ensure hospital capacity is properly distributed based on need, not wealth or insurance status.
Lois Uttley
3:20:16
Good afternoon.
3:20:17
I'm Lois Huntley.
3:20:19
I've been working with community coalitions across New York and really the nation for more than 30 years to try to protect their access to crucial hospital services.
3:20:30
So I wanna warn today that really hospital closings are worsening, already dangerous inequities, and access to hospital care across our city.
3:20:42
Medically underserved New Yorkers.
3:20:44
I mean, people who are disabled, frail elderly, people with low incomes, pregnant people.
3:20:51
They're losing their trusted local hospitals.
3:20:55
They're facing long and exhausting trips to other unfamiliar hospitals through congestive traffic.
3:21:02
Will they get there in time?
3:21:04
If it's an emergency, will they have to wait for hours because they're overcrowding Will there be a bed available if they're going to be admitted?
3:21:14
I think it's seriously in doubt.
3:21:17
As you know, chairperson Shulman Queens, which lost 4 safety net hospitals over the last 20 years, now has the lowest number of hospital beds per thousand people of any bureau, 1.65.
3:21:33
And the second lowest is Brooklyn as I'm sure assembling women, narcissist, well aware, DANGER OF LOSING SUNY DOWN STATE HAS ONLY TWO HOSPITAL BEDS FOR EVERY 1000 PEOPLE.
3:21:45
MANHATTAN WHERE WE'RE SITTING BY CONTRAST HAS 5.7 HOSPITAL BEDS FOR EVERY 1000 PEOPLE.
3:21:51
THAT'S MORE THAN TWICE THE CITY WIDE AVERAGE OF 2.7 But even here in this borough, there are stark disparities in access to hospital care.
3:22:01
The affluent Upper East Side has 10.5 hospital beds for thousand people.
3:22:07
That's more than four times the citywide average.
3:22:11
By contrast, the much poorer and more diverse, lower east side has less than one hospital bed per thousand people.
3:22:19
Yet, the lower east side is in danger of losing its hospital, while the upper east side is slated for a huge hospital expansion at Lenox Hill.
3:22:29
So we need policymakers at the state and city levels like you to take action to ensure that hospital capacity is properly distributed where it is needed.
3:22:43
Not only in the communities that are richer, wider, and have commercial health insurance.
3:22:49
We need equity in hospital care.
3:22:52
Thank you.
