By GAYLA CAWLEY
LYNN — The Massachusetts Department of Public Health will conduct a public hearing on Thursday, Jan. 7, regarding plans to close Union Hospital in three years.
A legal notice was sent out by the Department of Public Health stating that the department had been notified of the Partners Healthcare/North Shore Medical Center’s intent to “discontinue providing inpatient medical and surgical services at its Union Hospital campus” and that the closure of those services would occur in approximately three years. The closure would be in conjunction with relocating those health services to Salem Hospital.
The hearing will take place on Thursday, Jan. 7 at 4 p.m. in City Hall’s Veterans Memorial Auditorium.
“This public hearing is the next step in the regulatory process in our proposed plan to restructure the way we deliver care on to patients on the North Shore,” Kevin Ronningen, a hospital spokesman, said. “That plan will improve care and coordination across a wide spectrum of health services. In the end, it realigns practices and facilities to make high-quality care more effective and efficient and improves access to the community-based care that North Shore residents use most.”
Ronningen said the public hearing is part of an “Essential Services” filing. On Jan. 12, there is a public hearing in Salem at the Hawthorne Hotel at 4 p.m., as part of the hospital’s “Determination of Need” filing.
“Essential services refers to moving services out of one location and into another,” Ronningen said. “Determination of need looks at our plans for expansion at the Salem campus to ensure we are able to serve the needs of our patients.”
Ronningen said after those two public hearings, the Department of Public Health will review the application of Partners/NSMC, along with the testimony from the hearings, and make a decision on whether or not the hospital can proceed with the project as planned, or if modifications need to be made.
“We are on a three- to four-year timeline for this project,” Ronningen said. “Union Hospital will remain open that entire time.”
City officials reiterated their interest in keeping Union Hospital open and see the public hearing as an opportunity to get their message across.
City Council President Dan Cahill said the potential closure of Union Hospital has been an ongoing concern in Lynn for a number of years.
“January 7 is an opportunity for the city of Lynn and its residents to show the Department of Public Health that we, as a city, are in full support of a full service hospital,” Cahill said. “I strongly urge our residents to attend this critical hearing to show the Department of Public Health our city is unified in its desire for access to critical health care services.”
Cahill said the matter of Union Hospital’s closure is now in the hands of the Department of Public Health.
Ward 1 Councilor Wayne Lozzi said the hearing is another step in the direction Union Hospital is taking, which is to eventually close and move to Salem, “which we are very much opposed to.” He said the hearing gives residents a chance to “voice their concerns to the Department of Public Health and request that Union Hospital be denied the ability to close the hospital.”
Lozzi said he believes the public hearing will have an impact, as it’s the first public action for Union Hospital before the health department. He said with the closure of Union Hospital, Salem would be the closest option for most Lynn residents. He said for those who live on Western Avenue, the option isn’t so bad, but for those residents who live north of Wyoma Square, “that could mean life or death.”
“We very much need this hospital,” Lozzi said. “It’s more than just a shame. It’s life or death. It’s vital.”
A representative for the Department of Public Health could not be reached for comment.
Gayla Cawley can be reached at [email protected].
