Suozzi Names New Hospital Chairman

-- Martin Payson, Former Vice-Chair of Time Warner, Comes to Board with Extensive Hospital Experience

Mineola, NY – Nassau County Executive Thomas R. Suozzi has appointed Martin Payson, former vice chairman of Time Warner, Inc., and until recently a member of the Nassau County Interim Finance Board, as board chairman of the Nassau Health Care Corporation.

Along with his impressive business background, Payson has extensive hospital experience.  For the past 11 years, Payson has served as chairman of Maimonides Medical Center in Borough Park, Brooklyn.  He is also chair of Howard University’s medical affairs committee, which oversees Howard University Medical Center in Washington, D.C.  Until last year, Payson served as Chairman of Tulane University’s health sciences committee, which has oversight of Tulane Medical Center.  And he has served two years as chairman of the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges, further solidifying his experience in Board governance.

Until his appointment as NHCC’s new chairman, Payson for five years chaired NIFA’s committee overseeing the NHCC and its hospital, the Nassau County University Medical Center.  In that role, Payson facilitated the collaboration between the hospital and the county – meeting regularly with hospital administrators and officials from the county executive and county comptroller’s office – after years of scant county-hospital cooperation.

“Payson brings invaluable leadership in business and health care – and the business of health care,” Suozzi said.  “His hospital experience is broad and deep.  And thanks to his work on NIFA’s board, he also brings a thorough, first-hand understanding of what the Nassau University Medical Center, a vital safety net for the county’s poor and uninsured, needs to succeed.

“Like other public hospital systems, NHCC must continue to strive for efficiency while fulfilling its mission to care for all of Nassau County’s residents,” Suozzi added.  Along with the hospital, NHCC manages several community clinics and the A. Holly Paterson Extended Care Facility in Uniondale.

Payson fills the vacancy left by Mary Norena, a Suozzi appointee who resigned from NHCC’s board May 10. Suozzi has appointed Payson to lead the board; current chairman Lawrence Gottlieb has submitted his resignation after nearly four years as chairman.

“My role is to lead the board in coherent policy, and to serve the health care needs of the most vulnerable Nassau residents,” Payson said.

Nassau County Comptroller Howard Weitzman said, “Martin Payson is an excellent choice to serve as Chairman of the NHCC Board. Especially now, as the county is being asked to consider adding to its existing subsidies, NHCC requires strong board leadership to ensure that hospital management takes the actions necessary to prevent this vital healthcare system from failing. With his extensive background in helping troubled hospitals and his chairmanship of NIFA’s committee on NHCC, Payson has shown that he has the experience, leadership and financial acumen to help put the hospital’s turn-around back on track.”

Payson was president and general counsel of Warner Communications during the company’s historic 1990 merger with Time Warner.  After the merger, Payson was vice chairman of Time Warner, Inc., until he resigned in 1992.  He went on to become chairman of Latin Communications Group, a privately-held Spanish language media company.

Payson is currently on the board of directors of Panavision, Inc., the leading provider of motion picture and television cameras; Delta Financial Corp, a sub-prime lender; and Carl Marks & Co., Inc., a privately held merchant banking company.  He has also served on the board of several companies over the past 20 years, including Information Holdings, Inc., Classic Communications, Global Decisions Group LLC, Bestform Group, Inc., Renaissance Communications Corp., Meridian Sports, Inc. and AVX Corporation.

“Martin’s business acumen, coupled with his vast hospital experience, makes him the right person at the right time to lead the board,” Suozzi said.  “With Payson at the helm, I have the utmost confidence that the board will make sure NHCC’s turnaround remains on track.”