HAMMONTON BLOG

8:45 p.m. Update - The state Department of Health and Senior Services says the surgeon who signed a letter of intent to purchase Kessler Memorial Hospital appears to be in breach of that agreement and wants the hospital to pursue other options. In a letter to hospital officials dated Wednesday, Department of Health and Senior Services Commissioner Heather Howard said her department was advised that the hospital had still not received a deposit from cardiovascular surgeon B. Reddy Dandolu. Dandolu signed a letter Friday stating his intentions to purchase the hospital for a reported $7.5 million. But the nonrefundable $300,000 deposit that was supposed to be wired to Kessler by the close of business Monday under that agreement never arrived, according to department spokeswoman Donna Leusner. It would appear this is a material breach of the Letter of Intent, Howard said in the letter. If so, it also appears to be a prudent measure to pursue alternative discussions to secure appropriate health care services for your community. The money was needed to help cover a $500,000 payroll shortfall that prevented the hospitals employees from getting paid Friday. Hammonton agreed to loan the hospital $200,000 for the balance, with a stipulation: the hospital must have possession of Dandolus down payment before the taxpayer funds are released. The hospital notified the department Tuesday that it would voluntarily stop admitting new patients due to its inability to meet payroll. And the state issued a divert advisory a request to take patients elsewhere to area ambulance squads over the weekend. Kesslers interim Chief Restructuring Officer Michael Sandnes said, in a letter to DHSS Deputy Commissioner Matthew DOria on Tuesday, that he expected the payroll money to be received sometime Wednesday and that paychecks would be immediately released to the staff. But Peter Gould, the vice president of District 1199C of the National Union of Hospital and Health Care Employees, confirmed that the unions members at Kessler still had not been paid as of Wednesday afternoon. Dandolu also attempted to purchase Plainfields troubled Muhlenberg Regional Medical Center in 2008, but that deal eventually fell through. Plainfield Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs said that deal dissolved due to an apparent disagreement between Dandolus DBR Healthcare and Muhlenberg officials over the terms and prices of the agreement. While Robinson-Briggs said her city helped facilitate the negotiations, she did not know how far along in the negotiation process the parties got. But she only had positive things to say about Dandolu and expressed a desire to still welcome him and the acute-care facility hed bring with him to Plainfield. I wish him the best of luck and support with his new venture, she said. I wish he had enough money to buy both hospitals. Messages left for Sandnes and Dandolu received no response Wednesday.

 E-mail Robert Spahr:

RSpahr@pressofac.com

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