A provocative TV commercial paid for by Cobble Hill residents airing later this week depicts a dying patient and frantic ambulance workers dealing with the aftermath of the closure of Long Island College Hospital.
Previews of the controversial spot were released Monday as a Brooklyn judge pumped new life into advocates’ efforts to keep LICH open by issuing a temporary restraining order Monday forbidding state Health Department officials and SUNY personnel from moving forward with LICH’s closure plan.
Supreme Court Judge Johnny Lee Baynes set a May 2 hearing date for the case, in which unions and doctors call for SUNY Downstate’s campus council to review the LICH closure plan before it can be re-submitted to the Health Department. Their case also charges that state regulations about how the Health Department handles hospital closures are “unconstitutionally vague.”
“It changes everything,” said nurses’ union executive director Jill Furillo. “It’s an important victory for our patients.”
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Before Baynes’ decision, LICH was expected to close as soon as June 17th. Layoff notices were mailed last month to 1,800 hospital employees.