BOSTON — Gov. Maura Healey announced Friday that the state will “take control” of St. Elizabeth Medical Center in Brighton through the use of eminent domain, and her administration has deals in place to save four other properties. Steward Health Care Hospitals in Massachusetts for the closure.
“We are closing the Steward chapter, once and for all, in Massachusetts,” Healey said at a news conference. “In doing so, we are protecting access to health care in those communities and preserving the jobs of thousands of hard-working women and men in these hospitals.”
Agreements have been reached “in principle” to hand over Saint Anne's Hospital in Fall River, Good Samaritan Medical Center in Brockton, Morton Hospital in Taunton and Holy Family hospitals in Haverhill and Methuen to new owners. But Healey said the private equity firms that manage Butler's bankruptcy They are not acting in the best interest of Massachusetts residents when it comes to a deal for St. Elizabeth's. Steward filed for bankruptcy in May and said it would put all of its U.S. hospitals into bankruptcy. On sale.
“Enough is enough,” the governor said in a statement. “Our administration is taking control of Saint Elizabeth's through eminent domain so that we can ease the transition to new ownership and keep this hospital open.”
Eminent domain refers to the government's power to take private property for public use.
New Owners for Steward Hospitals
If the deals are approved, Lawrence General Hospital would take over Holy Family hospitals. Rhode Island-based Lifespan would take over Morton and Saint Anne's.
Boston Medical Center would assume control of Good Samaritan and Saint Elizabeth's once the state's eminent domain process is complete, Healey said.
Steward did not immediately comment on the state's announcement when contacted by WBZ-TV.
Healey said his administration is working with lawmakers to craft a “fiscally responsible financing plan that includes cash advances, capital support and maximizing federal contributions” for the transfer of the hospital's ownership.
Steward CEO Ralph de la Torre has been accused for years of putting profits before patients and has been subpoenaed before the U.S. Senate. Senators Ed Markey of Massachusetts and Bernie Sanders of Vermont have called him “the poster child” of corporate greed.
“I think it's a win for Massachusetts because we got rid of a really bad operator,” Healey said of Steward.
Carney Hospital and Nashoba Valley Medical Center remain closed
Healey's new announcement does not affect the planned closures Carney Hospital in Dorchester and Nashoba Valley Medical Center in Ayer that Steward announced last month after no qualified offers were made.
State and local health officials told Carney staffers on Tuesday that there are There are no plans to take over the facilities Healey said his administration is focused on finding new jobs for workers and transferring patients to new hospitals.
“It’s an incredibly troubling reality,” Healey said of the impending closure of those hospitals. “Please know that our administration will continue to work with those communities to do the best we can to convey the urgency of a safe transition of care and to support our workers.”
Steward's eighth hospital in Massachusetts, Norwood Hospital, It has been closed as it was flooded by heavy rains in June 2020.
