AMHERST, N.Y. (WKBW) — Kaleida Health announced the closure of another facility, adding to growing concerns about healthcare access in Western New York as workers and patients face uncertainty about their future care.
The Millard Fillmore Surgery Center in Amherst is set to close Oct. 1, following the recent announcement that two clinics, Buffalo Therapy Services and DeGraff Medical Park, will close Nov. 10. The healthcare provider said the closures are due to funding issues.
More than 60 employees will be impacted by the closures, with a majority being union-represented workers.
"We can't stop them from closing the surgery center, but we bargained a severance package for people. So people will have up to eight weeks of pay. Obviously, they can collect unemployment as they're looking for other work," said Cori Gambini, president of CWA Local 1168.
Patients express concerns about losing care
Retired perioperative nurse Marlene Craden knows firsthand the care that Kaleida Health provides to patients. She retired in November 2024, having served for 50 years. Since 2019, she has been receiving therapy for her shoulder and now for chronic pain in her lower spine at the Maple Road site.
"It becomes very painful to the point, sometimes it's almost disabling. You can't sit, you can't get out of a chair, you can't get out of your car. You can't get out of your bed," Craden said,.
She visits weekly, depending on her pain levels, which she rates as 9 out of 10.
"I have a physical therapist that takes care of me all this time that I've been going, and he finds ways of helping me feel better by these various manipulations that he does and it is really quite amazing," Craden said.
She is pleading with Kaleida to reconsider the closures.
"My whole reason for speaking is I'm sort of begging Kaleida to reconsider what they've done and see if there's anything that they could possibly do to keep these physical therapy sites open and available to the patients. Especially the patients who have been going there for a long time for chronic problems," Craden said.
Union fights to keep facilities open
Gambini said the union is actively working to get officials to understand the impact of these closures.
"If you need anything, please call us. Same thing to the patients; we'll work with you. We're fighting, trying to figure out if there's a way to keep these places open. That's what we want to see happen," Gambini said.
She warned about the long-term consequences of closing healthcare facilities.
"Once you close the hospital, it's not easy. You can't just reopen it. These things will happen and then when everyone realizes what a terrible mistake it is, it's going to take years to dig ourselves out of that hole," Gambini said.
The union will hold a press conference outside DeGraff Medical Park on Wednesday, Sept. 17 at 1 p.m.
