By Howard Koplowitz
Calls to St. Vincent's seeking comment were not returned.The health system is considered a debtor-in-possession, or DIP, because it continues to operate although it is protected from creditors under Chapter 11, which it filed for last year.According to GE, St. Vincent's will use a portion of the loan to retire all of the publicly held bonds issued by the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York. Other uses for the loan would be to upgrade the health system's physical plants. It is unclear whether the heating, cooling, mechanical, plumbing and lighting systems are part of the planned upgrades.The Chicago-based financial services company said the $350 million will be spread out among several private lenders that will provide lower financing rates than what St. Vincent's previously had. It was unclear who those lenders are.By having a variety of institutions provide the loan, the lenders would be able to assume a lower risk. “The DIP financing agreement gives Saint Vincent Catholic Medical Centers sufficient liquidity while we restructure and allows us to continue to provide high quality services throughout the process,” said , Guy Sansone, St. Vincent's CEO and chief restructuring officer, in a statement. “We are extremely encouraged that GE Healthcare Financial Services has partnered with Saint Vincent's, giving us the flexibility to move the organization forward as an innovative and fiscally sound healthcare provider in the New York market.” St. Vincent's is still in the early stages of finding buyers for both Mary Immaculate and St. John's. One local health system ÐNorth Shore-Long Island Jewish Medical CenterÐ and one local hospital ÐNew York Hospital QueensÐ had expressed preliminary interest in acquiring either or both facilities. St. Vincent's has said that it wants to ensure that Mary Immaculate and St. John's remain hospitals once they are sold.Reach reporter Howard Koplowitz by e-mail at news@timesledger.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 173
