By Kevin Coughlin
While the gaudy dollars and statewide implications of last fall’s $26 million hospital tax settlement got most of the attention, Morristown extracted some other perks from the Atlantic Health System.
These appear to include help for the beleaguered Morristown Ambulance Squad.
The Atlantic Health System announced this week that its subsidiary, Atlantic Ambulance, will be a primary emergency services provider to the town. The understaffed Morristown squad will respond to calls when it’s able.
Atlantic Ambulance has added a $120,000 vehicle for this mission, courtesy of The Foundation for Morristown Medical Center. The gift doubles Atlantic’s EMS presence in Morristown.
Atlantic Health, the parent organization of Morristown Medical Center, also pledged to help find new headquarters for the local squad, which is being displaced by the Speedwell Avenue redevelopment project.
Although these items were not stipulated in the historic tax agreement, they did stem from “the enhanced relationship developed between Atlantic Health System and the town in recent months,” said AHS spokesman Rob Seman.
“The health and well-being of the Morristown community is a priority shared by our organization, the town and the volunteer squad alike,” Brian Gragnolati, president and CEO of Atlantic Health System, said in a statement.
“By working together on the very front lines of health care, we can work together to ensure that the community receives the best of care.”
NEW CEO, NEW COLLABORATION
After years of legal battles with the town, AHS agreed last fall to pay property taxes on its nonprofit Morristown Medical Center, from 2006 to 2025. The settlement followed a decision by a state tax judge who sided with Morristown, ruling that the hospital operated like a commercial enterprise.
Looking to prevent similar court showdowns across the state, the Legislature overwhelmingly passed a measure to charge nonprofit hospitals a fee in lieu of taxes, to cover costs of local services. But Gov. Christie pocket-vetoed the bill earlier this month.
In addition to tax payments to Morristown, AHS also agreed to:
- Assist the town and other health and service organization in compiling a community health needs assessment every three years
- Assist in creation of an implementation plan to prioritize those community needs and identify how to serve them
- Meet annually with local police and fire officials to promote collaboration and training to enhance “life safety and security”
- Work with town officials to “promote desirable community and economic development”
AHS re-affirmed its commitment to those goals this week, adding that it also will help create a health and wellness program for municipal employees and their families.
“This dedication of resources to Morristown demonstrates that Atlantic Health System is a willing partner in ensuring the health of our community. I look forward to further deepening this relationship in the coming year,” Mayor Tim Dougherty said in a statement.
The Mayor has credited the improved relations largely to Gragnolati, who assumed leadership of Atlantic Health last year.
Karen Johansen, president of the Morristown Ambulance Squad, welcomed Atlantic’s help.
“The dedicated members Morristown Ambulance Squad have been committed to serving the residents of Morristown for more than half a century,” she said in a statement. “By working with Atlantic Ambulance, we look forward to being able to continue to fulfill that mission.”
The ambulance gift to Atlantic embodies the hospital foundation’s purpose, said its chairman, Chris Baldwin.
“Our mission is to help the hospital provide our community with the care it needs,” Baldwin said in a statement. “I can’t think of a better use of philanthropic dollars than in ensuring a resource as vital as emergency services.”
