The approval Thursday of the N.J. Department of Health for Monmouth Medical Center’s Certificate of Need Application, allowing RWJBarnabas Health to build its planned Vogel Medical Campus in Tinton Falls, was not cheered by all.
While the hospital will move only a few miles – and leave emergency department and behavioral services at its existing facility in Long Branch – some feel the move will hurt the community.
Representative Frank Pallone (D, 7th District) and Hackensack Meridian Health (which operates Jersey Shore University Medical Center in nearby Neptune) have been vocal in their opposition.
HMH released this statement late Thursday.
“The New Jersey Department of Health’s approval of RWJ Barnabas Health’s plan to relocate Monmouth Medical Center from Long Branch does not alleviate Hackensack Meridian Health’s concerns about the impact on patient access, emergency response times, and the region’s hospital capacity,” it said.
“Throughout this process, residents, families, caregivers, first responders, and community leaders have expressed the need for Long Branch to have timely access to local care, from maternity services to cardiac emergencies and stroke care. Many community members already face significant transportation challenges, and moving a full-service hospital further away from where people live and work will only exacerbate these barriers to care.”
The plan was forwarded to the state after lengthy debate from the from the state health planning board. It came with conditions, noted by Pallone.
“While the state commissioner of health approved RWJ Barnabas’s application for a new hospital in Tinton Falls, they also required that the emergency department and outpatient surgery services, including specialty clinics and imaging services remain in Long Branch indefinitely,” Pallone said in a statement.
HMH, in a statement, said it was concern those conditions will not be enough.
“The Department’s conditions, which include keeping outpatient services in Long Branch, documented engagement with New Jersey Transit to expand transportation options, and investment in a community health improvement plan, do not address all of our concerns and still do not replace the value of having a full-service hospital,” it said.
