By ANNEMARIE FRANCZYK
Business First

The state Legislature is long on complexity and short on time as it considers options for an Erie County Medical Center and Kaleida Health consolidation.

The primary task is to deliberate proposed legislation from the state Department of Health that would remove much of Erie County's financial and administrative responsibilities from the medical center's operations under a joint governance arrangement with Kaleida. Legal action begun by Erie County and the medical center to interrupt some of the consolidation activities could complicate matters.

The undertaking is further challenged by the calendar. The Legislature received the proposed bill on June 3 and is scheduled to end its session June 23. Some say the timing is sufficient for the Legislature to take action well in advance of a state-imposed June 30 deadline to have an agreement in place for the state-mandated marriage between ECMC and Kaleida. But there is disagreement whether either of those dates is solid.

The incentive for meeting the month-end deadline is promised public funding for the proposed heart and vascular center, estimated to cost $140 million to build, and other aspects of moving, combining and closing operations as part of the consolidation. But some legislative sources say the greater incentive for getting this done now is the fall elections.

"The smart guys don't want this hanging over their heads," one source said.

Looking for consensus

Some specifics of the Health Department's proposal include a state-appointed ECMC board, contract negotiations that would shift from the county to the ECMC board and the removal of the county's mandatory capital-contributions and operating subsidies as of 2010.

As of June 11, the proposal had no sponsor in either house. Assemblyman Robin Schimminger, D-Kenmore, said he was considering sponsoring the bill, if parts could be tweaked in order to build some support for it.

"Personally, I have no need for any changes, but this is a matter of building consensus. Not everyone is on board with the legislation," Schimminger said.

Meanwhile, Sen. Dale Volker, R-Depew, called for formal mediation between ECMC and Kaleida, since representatives from both sides were expected to descend on Albany as month-end approached. A more casual approach attempted a few weeks ago seemed to progress, but broke down, he said. He is tending to support ECMC in the matter.

"I'm trying my best not to lean with anybody but primarily I have to think of the taxpayers, and that's ECMC," Volker said. "Unless we do this right, the county's going to get stuck."

The biggest liability facing Erie County, Volker said, is that the $100 million borrowed by the county against the medical center would remain a liability of the medical center. Other expenses the county could be liable for include the retiree costs of the public institution.

Volker also has thrown support behind the Erie County Legislature's request for a home-rule message regarding any changes to the law that gave ECMC status as a public-benefit corporation.

It was county legislation that created the public-benefit corporation that was then passed by Albany.

"We don't want Albany dictating what happens in Buffalo," he said.

City concerns

Assemblyman Mark Schroeder, D-Buffalo, noted that the city should have concerns in the matter, should ECMC's future in health-care delivery be threatened in the consolidation.

According to the original agreement that created ECMC, any conversion of the medical center to non-health-center status would revert the property to the city, he said.

The Department of Health needs to take a greater role in building consensus, said Assemblyman Jim Hayes, R-Amherst, not just drop legislation in the final weeks of the session and consider its work done.

Sen. Mary Lou Rath, R-Williamsville, suggested that both deadlines might be extended in favor of reaching an agreement, but since lawsuits have been filed, the courts are unlikely to wait a lengthy period for the Legislature.

The most recent legal action was taken by Erie County in a petition before the state Supreme Court that asked the state to close Buffalo General Hospital or ECMC, as originally mandated by the Commission on Health Care Facilities in the 21st Century, commonly known as the Berger Commission.

ECMC also is attempting to stop some aspects of the consolidation in legal actions taken in April and May.