Attorney General Andrew Cuomo Speaks to Health Care Professionals at New York Methodist Hospital

Date: 12/17/2007

Attorney General of New York State Andrew M. Cuomo recently spoke to over 100 health care professionals at the fourth annual Joseph Silver, M.D., Memorial Lecture, at New York Methodist Hospital, in Park Slope, Brooklyn. The lecture series was established in honor of Joseph Silver, M.D., former chief of orthopedic surgery at NYM, who died in 2004.  Dr. Silver was affiliated with NYM for 40 years and had served as chief of orthopedic surgery for 20 years.

"Joe Silver was a brilliant surgeon,  said Mark J. Mundy, president and CEO of NYM, to event attendees.  "We truly miss his talent.  He was gracious, thoughtful and incredibly kind."  Leslie Wise, M.D., program director of the surgical residency program, also expressed his deep admiration for the late Dr. Silver.  Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, brother of the late Dr. Silver, introduced Attorney General Cuomo to the audience.

Andrew Cuomo, who was elected the 64th Attorney General of New York State on November 7, 2006, lectured on the importance of integrity within the health care system.  "Health care is an area where you see the most troubling concentration of corporate power,  said Attorney General Cuomo.  "One of my jobs is to provide balance between corporate power and corporate abuse."

Attorney General Cuomo went on to discuss his office''s efforts to regulate Medicaid fraud.  "Medicaid is an essential program, so we''ve been very aggressive about policing Medicaid fraud,  he said.  "We told the entire industry that if you''re thinking about committing Medicaid fraud, don''t do it."  Attorney General Cuomo also spoke about his office''s investigations of the physician ranking systems by HMOs.  "The concept of ranking doctors and providing consumers with information is a good thing,  he said.  "But what criteria do you use to define the best?  The rankings were based on data that determined cost, not the best doctors.  We''ve outlined a fair system of information that will help consumers make informed choices about physicians."

Attorney General Cuomo ended his lecture by telling the health care professionals in attendance just how important their work is.  "When you look at the service that doctors provide, elected officials can''t dream to compare,  he said.  "I like to think that we help doctors do what they do."