The Evening Sun File Photo

CHENANGO COUNTY – On Wednesday, March 22, the New York State Department of Health released an analysis forecasting that upon the passing of the Ryan/Collins/Faso health care repeal, 10 hospitals throughout the 22nd Congressional District would lose a total of $28.1 million in funding, per a release from Governor Andrew Cuomo's office.

Chenango Memorial Hospital (CMH) is among the 10 hospitals that could lose funding if the repeal and its replacement are passed.

“The massive cuts in funding to hospitals in Congresswoman (Claudia) Tenney’s District underscore the devastating impact the combination of the Collins/Faso Amendment and Paul Ryan’s health care replacement plan will have on New Yorkers across the state,” states the release from Cuomo's office.

According to the DoH's analysis, CMH stands to lose $1,340,299 in funding if the Collins/Faso Amendment and Paul Ryan’s health care replacement plan are passed and enacted.

"UHS leadership is recommending that Congress vote against the American Health Care Act in its current form," reads a statement from Matthew J. Salanger, President and CEO of the UHS system, of which UHS Chenango Memorial Hospital is a part.

"The bill as it now stands would mean some residents of the Southern Tier would lose coverage, patients would have less access to needed healthcare services, and local nonprofit hospitals would suffer cuts in the Medicaid reimbursements that are so vital to their solvency. We ask Congress to work toward an approach that will not have a detrimental effect on hospitals and the patients we care for," concludes the statement on behalf of CMH.

Other hospitals that would be affected by the Ryan/Collins/Faso health care repeal and replacement and their respective cuts in funding, according to the DoH release, include:

• Community Memorial Hospital in Hamilton ($467,179)

• Cortland Regional Medical Center ($1,265,230)

• Faxton St. Luke’s Healthcare in Utica ($5,385,953)

• Little Falls Hospital ($492,832)

• Oneida Healthcare Center ($959,873)

• Our Lady of Lourdes Memorial Hospital in Binghamton ($4,356,566)

• Rome Memorial Hospital ($1,726,131)

• St. Elizabeth Medical Center in Utica ($8,537,026)

• United Health Services ($8,537,026)

“The radical conservative ideology in Washington has declared war on New York with legislation that will devastate hospitals across the state and hurt New Yorkers,” said Gov. Cuomo. “These massive cuts will cripple our hospitals and ravage the health care services on which New Yorkers rely, with $28.1 million in cuts to hospitals in the 22nd District alone. I urge members of the community to call their member of Congress and demand that they vote ‘no’ on the unconscionable piece of legislation.”