State Grant Gives Mount Vernon Hospital New Life

MOUNT VERNON, NY (AP / WCBS 880) - A suburban New York hospital is getting a new lease on life with a state grant that is expected to keep it open and limit job losses.

WCBS 880's Catherine Cioffi reports

Mount Vernon Hospital will get a new emergency room, an assisted living center and expanded outpatient clinics with the help of a $23 million grant from the state Department of Health.

City officials say 20 doctors and 27 nurses still will have to be laid off under the restructuring.

A study showed that the hospital had a $23 million shortfall in 2008. It is the city's largest employer.

Board of trustees chairman, Daryl DeVerna, says the hospital has created a new model that is financially secure and addresses the needs of the community.

(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.)