Association honors business ‘advocates’
Hales, Glazer among APEX award winners
By KEITH LORIA

Over the years, the Westchester County Association has recognized various community leaders and others for their work on behalf on the business community. This year, the business group is introducing another recognition ­ the APEX awards ­ which will be presented at its Fall Leadership event, Nov. 8 at the Hilton Rye Town.

APEX, “awards for professional excellence,” will be presented to “people who have done some real substantial work for our community,” said WCA President William M. Mooney Jr.

“The APEX awards build on the WCA’s continuing commitment to recognize and assemble exceptional members who by their example and leadership will continue to strengthen our organization. … There will be different awards representing what a person has done within that segment.”

One of those segments deals with advocacy and two men met the criteria for the Advocacy Award, which Mooney described as the best advocates for the business community and their accomplishments related to that.

Hale to the CEO

One of the honorees is Thomas E. Hales, chairman and CEO of Union State Bank, who was chairman of WCA’s Blue Ribbon Task Force to study the financial crisis facing the county’s hospitals and make recommendations for reform.

“Tom was picked because he led this blue ribbon committee that looked into health care and it was extraordinarily successful,” Mooney said. “He put together a major part of power brokers in our community to discuss the problems of health care and hospitals and they accomplished a lot.”

Hales said the project was initiated because of concerns over health-care costs.

“The Westchester County Association represents various business organizations in Westchester County, who pay about 80 to 90 percent of that health-care cost,” Hales said. “As long as the health-care system is paid for by a noninvolved business group, is controlled by government and can take its savings from the caregivers, doctors, nurses and hospitals, it will function inefficiently.”

Hales worked to find solutions and the committee came up with a plan to implement them. “We need to make capital investments, which must come from profits,” Hales said. “The providers do not have that availability. Government can continue to piecemeal the health-care industry. There has been a complete change in the industry over the last 20 years. We must have efficient hospitals, doctors, efficient insurance providers and a system that ensures that efficiency.

“However, it cannot be designed by politicians with agendas that are sometimes not aligned with the economic delivery of the system. I would hope they would consider realigning the model with the inclusion of business in a much bigger way and with government as a watchdog and enabler for the transition.”

Hales began his banking career in 1981 as the chairman of Union State Bank and helped it grow from two branches and $27 million in assets to 31 branches and more than $3 billion in assets today.

Hales sits on the boards of directors of a number of area organizations, including New York Medical College, Iona College and the Leukemia Society of the Hudson Valley.

Working for reform

Joining Hales as a co-winner is Robert Glazer, CEO of ENT and Allergy Associates L.L.P.

“… Bob Glazer … was very instrumental in educating a lot of us and helping us as far as getting legislation passed,” Mooney said. “We had four bills passed (regarding health care). It’s not only a question of being an advocate but what have you been able to accomplish in a role as an advocate in the community context to get better and health care is a major part of our infrastructure.”

Glazer joined ENT in 1997 and has more than 25 years of health-care administrative experience in financial operations, managed-care contracting, physician recruitment and health-care marketing.

“I was originally hired as the CFO and when I first came here we were under 16 physicians in seven locations and today we are 75 physicians in 23 locations,” he said. “We also manage five sleep centers and our practice has looked to create a clinical ENT analogy practice that hires the best doctors, has clinically state-of-the-art offices and also invests in state-of-the-art technology. I really focus my attention on strategic business relationships and merger and acquisition work.”

Glazer said he was honored by his award and grateful the business community is recognizing that ENT is taking a leadership role in advocacy.

“Part of this was not just being active in health-care reform. I’ve lived and worked in this community and ENT has a large impact in this community and we want to do a lot of things related to what’s best for not only our business but people who live and work here,” Glazer said. “Having been in this industry for 30 years, I think patients in particular and employers are more confused about the current state of affairs and we need to add some clarity to the current environment and where we are going.”

Glazer is also part of the tax-reform committee that is focusing on taxes in Westchester and he works with Marsha Gordon, president of The Business Council of Westchester, on her governmental affairs committee that is reviewing the Tappan Zee Bridge.

Glazer and his wife of 23 years, Randee, live in Milwood and are both involved in local community associations. His daughter, Emma, is in college and his son, Jonathan, in high school.

Other APEX award winners will be featured over the next several weeks.

 

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