Curran's NUMC chairman resigns under pressure

                                                                            

Ed Farbenblum (from Syracuse.com)


Ed Farbenblum, appointed chairman of the Nassau University Medical Center by former Democratic Nassau County Executive Laura Curran, has resigned from the public hospital's 15-member board.

A spokeswoman for Republican County Executive Bruce Blakeman today confirmed his resignation.

Newsday reported last week that Nassau County sheriff’s deputies served Farbenblum, from the Five Towns, with a notice of charges “brought for removal pursuant to Public Authorities Law.” 

Farbenblum has been part of Democratic resistance to Matthew Bruderman,  a wealthy Centre Island businessman appointed by Blakeman to replace Farbenblum as chairman.

The hospital -- loaded with contracts and jobs -- is one of the last sources of political patronage for the Nassau Democratic party, that lost heavily in the November elections.

During her last days in office, Curran appointed three new members to the hospital board to ensure continuing Democratic control of the East Meadow hospital and related medical facilities.

She had appointed Farbenblum, who operates a nursing home network, in June of last year to replace Robert Detor, who resigned.

Democrats challenged the legality of Bruderman's appointment to the  board and won a temporary court order to prevent him from serving. But Blakeman, working with the Republican legislature, worked around that order to reappoint Bruderman as chairman while Farbenblum remained a board member.

Newsday said Farbenblum denied as "absolute nonsense" charges that he hired a former employee of his nursing home company, failed to file a 2022 hospital budget and failed to maintain the confidentiality of attorney-client relations. He acknowledged had not filed a required financial disclosure form.

His resignation comes after Democrats on the board voted to fire General Counsel Meg Ryan. 

But Bruderman and Blakeman have refused to recognize Ryan's firing.

The fight continues.


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