New York, NY – Hospitals and nursing homes in the most flood-prone parts of New York City are being asked to discharge those patients they can and cancel elective hospital stays.
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Mayor Michael Bloomberg made the request Friday as a potential “super storm” heads toward the northeast.
He says officials are ready to take all measures needed to protect New Yorkers.
The city is not calling for any evacuation at this point.
Government agencies and utilities are beginning preparations. They include an order to stop all exterior construction work citywide at 5 p.m. Saturday until further notice.
Transit officials haven’t yet decided whether the city’s subways, buses and commuter railroads will be shut down.
The storm may include heavy rain, high winds, flooding, tornadoes, coastal surges — and possibly snow.
I had a conversation with 2 nursing home owners who were extremely frustrated as to how the state government treated them at the last hurricane Irene. they claimed that they went out of their way in helping place and admit patients from other nursing facilities and hospitals who had to be evacuated, they spent money in extra staff, equipment, and overtime but the government didn’t bother to reimburse them whatsoever. Last week as soon as the government realized that they’re about to be hit with another disastrous storm they decided that they will be kind enough, fearing that the nursing home owners will strike on them, to issue a spit in the bucket as a reimbursement for the previous storm irene.
They said that they spoke to a few other nursing home operators who will treat the government the same way the government treats them and therefore not do anything extra.