Photos: Day Kimball Staff Protest Hospital Cuts, Question Governor Malloy at Capitol

Day Kimball Healthcare President and CEO Robert Smanik (far left) speaks with Governor Dannel P. Malloy about the impact of hospital cuts to Day Kimball and Northeast Connecticut at the Capitol on Wednesday, March 16, 2016. Representative Christine Rosati Randall, D-Killingly, can be seen at the far right. Smanik was at the Capitol with dozens of Day Kimball employees to protest the hospital cuts during the Connecticut Hospital Association's annual hospital advocacy day.
More photos below.

 [Related: Click to join the fight to restore funding for healthcare in NECT. #BecauseWeCare]

Dozens of staff from Day Kimball Healthcare made their voices heard in protest of the deep cuts to Day Kimball Hospital at the state's Capitol yesterday, even gaining a personal audience with Governor Dannel P. Malloy.

The group of more than 30 were at the Capitol for the Connecticut Hospital Association's annual hospital advocacy day. They wore t-shirts that read "DKH CHAMPS" and carried signs proclaiming "Restore our hospital funding - DKH #BecauseWeCare." 

Senator Mae Flexer, D-Killingly, Representative Daniel Rovero, D-Dayville and Representative Christine Rosati Randall, D-Killingly gathered to meet with the group together and expressed their commitment to gaining restoration of the $3.8 million in supplemental and small hospital funding that is being withheld from Day Kimball Hospital.

"We're going to find a way to get our hospital's funding restored," Flexer said.

Flexer, Rovero and Rosati Randall walked with the Day Kimball staff to Governor Malloy's office, where Day Kimball President and CEO Robert Smanik and the rest of the group had the opportunity to speak with the Governor about the significant impact the hospital tax and the threatened cuts will have on healthcare and the economy in Northeast Connecticut.

"These cuts are detrimental to hospitals and healthcare across our state. But for a small, independent community hospital such as Day Kimball they could be devastating. We are our region's major provider of healthcare and largest employer," Smanik said. 

Smanik says that Day Kimball has been dealing with repeated and deepening cuts to funding over the last several years, and now the system is looking at a loss of $3.8 million in promised payments from the state for the care of Medicaid patients halfway through its fiscal year. If those payments are not made it will in effect equate to a roughly $6 million tax on the nonprofit healthcare system, an increase of nearly 50% over the hospital tax that Day Kimball paid last year.

"It's simply unsustainable for our healthcare system and for our community. We know our local legislators understand the implications of these cuts and are fighting hard to get the funding paid as promised. Our goal today was to ensure that Governor Malloy and the rest of our state's leadership understand the very human and critical impact these cuts will have on the communities of Northeast Connecticut as well," Smanik said.

The Day Kimball group also met with Senator Tony Guglielmo, R-Stafford, who also expressed his commitment to working toward restoration of hospital funding.

Barbara Chubbuck (third from left), a lifetime resident of Northeast Connecticut and 33-year employee of Day Kimball Healthcare, talks with Governor Malloy about the personal impact of the hospital cuts on herself, her family and her community. Senator Mae Flexer (far left), Representative Daniel Rovero (second from left) and Representative Christine Rosati Randall (not pictured) voiced support for the restoration of Day Kimball's funding as well. 

[Related: Click to join the fight to restore funding for healthcare in NECT. #BecauseWeCare]

Representative Daniel Rovero holds up one of Day Kimball Healthcare's signs in support of restoring funding to hospitals.

A portion of the dozens of Day Kimball Healthcare staff who visited the Capitol for hospital advocacy day, standing with DKH President and CEO Robert Smanik (back row, center), Senator Mae Flexer (back row, fifth from right), Representative Christine Rosati Randall (back row, sixth from right) and Representative Daniel Rovero (back row, third from left).

DKH staff member Barbara Chubbuck speaks with Senator Tony Guglielmo about cuts to funding facing Day Kimball Healthcare.

Day Kimball Healthcare staff arrive at the Capitol to advocate on behalf of restoring funding to hospitals.

 [Related: Click to join the fight to restore funding for healthcare in NECT. #BecauseWeCare]