New York City is desperately pleading for healthcare workers and equipment for the fight against the coronavirus — but a local doctor who has offered his network of 600 beds and 100 physicians said city and state bureaucrats have ignored him.
Dr. Yan Katsnelson said he’s been trying for weeks to get the offices of Mayor Bill de Blasio, Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the city and state health departments to take him up on his offer.
His 30 temporarily closed health clinics — equipped with 5,000-plus masks and oxygen machines — are collecting dust, he said, while overwhelmed local hospitals are forced to treat patients in hallways and waiting-room chairs.
“De Blasio said right now I will take beds anywhere and everywhere. What the hell is he talking about?” said Katsnelson, claiming his staff contacted City Hall “several times” in the last two weeks offering to take in COVID-19 patients or relieve hospitals of non-coronavirus patients.
“My CEO is desperate to offer a helping hand with our equipped medical facilities and physicians, [nurse practitioners] and [physician assistants],” a Katsnelson employee wrote in a March 19 email to city Health Department Assistant Commissioner Jennifer Rakeman, state Bureau of Communicable Disease Control director Daniel Kuhles, state Division of Epidemiology director Debra Blog, and others.
The employee also spoke briefly to de Blasio aide Freddi Goldstein later that day. She also contacted the governor’s office, said Katsnelson, a Chicago-based cardiovascular surgeon who owns a national network of vascular and fibroid clinics.
They haven’t heard back since mid-March.
“Telephone calls were made … voice mails were left and not returned,” the employee said of the city and state runaround.
Meanwhile, the number of hospitalizations in New York City grew to 11,739 Friday and deaths climbed to 1,867.
The coming weeks are expected to be worse. The mayor has said the city’s healthcare system was on track to run out of medical supplies, such as protective masks and gowns for workers, and equipment including ventilators, by Sunday.
On Friday, the city issued a public emergency alert seeking “licensed healthcare workers to support healthcare facilities in need.”
“The hospitals are not the problem. The problem is the system. [The government] needs to bless medical offices to serve the patients,” Katsnelson said.
After being ignored by city and state officials, Katsnelson presented his offer directly to five hospitals: Montefiore, Jamaica, Maimonides, Mt. Sinai and New York-Presbyterian. But red tape prevents them from accepting, he said.
“There is just no framework to accommodate [outside help] and unfortunately they couldn’t take it,” Katsnelson said. “Everyone said they would love to, they just don’t know how.”
Healthcare experts say there is a labyrinth of regulations and logistics to navigate before outpatient centers can provide hospital-grade services — and the process requires a partnership with public officials.
“How you take care of critical-care patients in [an ambulatory surgery] center? That’s a heavy ask,” said Dr. Adam Schlifke, a Stanford University professor and anesthesiologist who is part of an effort to convert outpatient clinics into facilities for infected patients.
“There are all sorts of logistical and operational barriers,” he said, such as proper gas hookups for ventilators, or respiratory therapists on hand to monitor breathing.
Katsnelson’s clinics typically perform minimally invasive outpatient procedures, such as embolizations to shrink uterine fibroids and vein stents to promote blood flow.
While the offices don’t have ventilators, Katsnelson said he can at least supply the basics hospitals are pining for, such as protective gear, beds, oxygen tanks and medical professionals.
Katsnelson is calling on Cuomo to issue an executive order that would dissolve red tape. He wants the state to ensure he would be reimbursed for all services performed on Medicaid patients and allow him to keep patients overnight.
While the doctor insisted his company first contacted state officials on March 19, a state Health Department spokesman said it didn’t receive Katsnelson’s offer until early Friday morning.
“We remain elated with the charitable spirit of all New Yorkers who continue to bring innovative suggestions to the table,” spokesman Gary Holmes said.
“Federal guidance on the roles ambulatory surgery centers may play as part of this ongoing public health response are rapidly evolving and the department is reviewing this guidance.”
Goldstein said Saturday, after The Post raised the issue, that she reconnected with Katsnelson’s employee and “put her in touch with some colleagues to help assess her offer and see whether we can put it to good use.”