State Reschedules Danbury Hospital’s

 Cardiac Public Hearing For May 13

DANBURY — The Connecticut Office of Health Care Access has rescheduled Danbury Hospital for the public hearing related to its Certificate of Need application to bring angioplasty and open heart surgery to western Connecticut. The new date is 1 pm to 7 pm on Thursday, May 13, in the Hospital’s John C. Creasy auditorium, 24 Hospital Avenue.

 Originally scheduled for the previous day, this is the only opportunity for patients, family members, legislators, business and civic leaders, and other members of the community to speak publicly to support the hospital’s efforts to provide advanced cardiac interventions.

Anyone who cannot attend can submit written testimony for the hearing, as well as sign the on-line petition at www.danburyhospital.org. Testimony should be addressed to Commissioner, Office of Health Care Access, 410 Capitol Avenue, MS #13HCA, PO Box 340308, Hartford CT 06134, and delivered to Danbury Hospital Community Relations Department, 24 Hospital Avenue, Danbury, CT 06810 no later than May 6.

Anyone who has already signed up to testify at the public hearing will be personally notified of this scheduling change by a hospital representative before May 3, and may call 797-7247 for more information.

Danbury Hospital filed its CON application with OHCA in December 2003 to request permission to provide the standard of care for treating heart attacks, angioplasty, along with open heart surgery, because the time and distance it takes to reach these services in other communities poses significant risks for patients in western Connecticut, according to Paul B. Iannini, MD, chairman, Department of Medicine, Danbury Hospital. Since that time, nearly 25,000 people have signed petitions and written letters of support to demonstrate their desire to have Danbury Hospital begin angioplasty and open heart surgery in western Connecticut.

 “Everyone in Connecticut deserves equal access to complete cardiac care. The public hearing will be one chance to publicly support Danbury Hospital’s efforts to provide advanced cardiac interventions,” said Dr Iannini.

“Right now, if you have a heart attack near a major heart center, you can get the help you need in just over an hour. But if you live or work in western Connecticut and nearby New York State, you will wait more than three hours to access the same level of care,” Dr Iannini said. “Your survival and quality of life after a heart attack are largely determined by when you receive treatment.”

The hospital also has a “technical” hearing scheduled for 10:30 am on Tuesday, May 25, at auditorium of Veteran’s Home and Hospital, 287 West Street, Rocky Hill, where it will present a final formal overview to support its CON application.