Colin A. Young
Bankrupt Steward Health Care announced Friday that it will close two of its hospitals here over the next month — Carney Hospital in Dorchester and Nashoba Valley Medical Center in Ayer — that received no qualified offers in its sale process.
“Over the past several months, Steward Health Care has been actively working to sell or transition all of its Massachusetts hospitals and we are in active final negotiations to sell six of our hospitals. Despite the lengthy sale process, which involved close coordination with lenders and regulators, there were no qualified offers for two hospitals, Carney Hospital and Nashoba Valley Medical Center, and unfortunately, they will close on or about August 31, 2024,” the company said Friday morning. “This is a difficult and unfortunate situation, and the impact it will have on our patients, employees and the communities we serve is regrettable. We will do everything we can to ensure a smooth transition for those affected while continuing to provide quality care to the patients we will continue to serve.”
Gov. Maura Healey, who has said her goal is to protect jobs and access to care at Steward’s eight hospitals in Massachusetts, said Friday morning: “This is not over.”
“It is unfortunate that the greed and mismanagement of Ralph de la Torre and Steward will lead to the closure of Carney and Nashoba Valley hospitals. These hospitals have long served their communities – their closures are about more than just the loss of beds, doctors, and nurses. We want to assure the people of Massachusetts that we have been diligently preparing for this moment and will take every step available to facilitate a smooth transition for affected patients and employees,” the governor said, referring to the company’s CEO.
In June, an average of 13 of Carney’s 83 medical beds were occupied and an average of 11 of Nashoba Valley’s 46 beds were occupied, the governor’s office said.
State law and regulations require any provider planning to close an essential service to notify the Department of Public Health at least 120 days in advance and then provide formal notice 90 days before the planned closure. It was unclear Friday morning whether Steward’s announcement that the Dorchester and Ayer hospitals would close in late August complied with state requirements.
Healey’s office said Friday that Carney Hospital and Nashoba Valley Medical Center “will proceed with an orderly and regulated closure,” with the next step being for the bankruptcy judge to consider approving Steward’s motion to close. Steward is required to send a notice of closure to the DPH, which will then “facilitate a transition for affected patients and employees,” the governor’s office said.
There are a litany of checkpoints along the way. The DPH must post a notice of a public hearing on the closure at least 81 days in advance and schedule the hearing at least 60 days before the closure takes effect.
Within 15 days of that public hearing, DPH must provide the hospital with a determination as to whether the service provided by the hospital is necessary to preserve access and health status in the hospital’s service area. If DPH deems the service necessary, the hospital is required to submit a plan to DPH to ensure access within 15 days, and the two parties can go back and forth until there are 10 days left before closure, according to DPH’s Division of Health Care Facility Licensing and Certification.
However, even if regulators deem the service essential to maintaining care, they cannot legally require a hospital to keep a service open to the public. The DPH can only require a provider to submit a plan outlining what patients will do after a closure and conduct post-closure follow-up, but not prevent a service from closing.
The company said Friday that it will “work closely with our patients in Carney and Nashoba to help them find the best possible care alternative and with our valued employees and healthcare professionals to assist them through this very difficult transition.”
Steward also said he had already “notified and is coordinating closely with appropriate federal and state agencies on the closure process.”
Filaine Deronnette, general vice president of the 1199SEIU union, which represents about 80,000 health care workers in the Bay State, responded to Friday’s announcement, saying “the future of health care in Massachusetts is at risk.”
“Steward Health Care’s decision to close Carney Hospital and Nashoba Valley Medical Center is devastating because it will create hospital deserts and exacerbate health inequities in the communities they serve. Patients across Massachusetts will now pay the price for Steward’s mismanagement if care is pushed miles away and emergency room capacity reaches crisis levels,” Deronnette said.
Recognizing the impact the Steward closures could have on the health care landscape, Healey also announced Friday a new online dashboard that will allow people in need of care to find nearby hospitals, understand the services available at each location and view monthly updates on patient volumes and bed availability. The two hospital closures come at a time when health care facilities of all shapes and sizes are under severe strain, and hospitals across the state are struggling to keep up with demand.
“The loss of these hospitals will not only impact these patients and communities, but will also jeopardize the care provided to patients served by other hospitals in the area, hospitals that are already overwhelmed and will now be forced to absorb patients left behind due to these closures,” the Massachusetts Nurses Association said in a statement Friday.
The union said its nurses and other health care workers “have stood firm throughout this crisis” and is calling on state and federal governments to keep hospitals open “because no community is replaceable and closure is not a viable or acceptable option.”
“In the meantime, we call on the state to enforce its law prohibiting hospital closures with less than 120 days’ notice to allow the state to find a way to preserve these hospitals for the care of these vulnerable communities,” the MNA said.
Steward was receiving bids for its seven hospitals (eight campuses) operating in Massachusetts: Good Samaritan Medical Center in Brockton, Morton Hospital in Taunton, St. Anne’s Hospital in Fall River, St. Elizabeth’s Hospital in Brighton, Carney Hospital in Dorchester, Holy Family Hospital with campuses in Methuen and Haverhill, and Nashoba Valley Medical Center in Ayer. Norwood Hospital, which was closed for renovation, was not included in the sale process.
Healey added: “For other hospitals, we know that Steward has received multiple offers to not only maintain but also improve five of its hospitals in three key regions. It is time for Steward and its real estate partners to finally put the communities they serve before their own selfish greed. They must finalize these agreements that are in their best interest and the best interest of patients and workers.”
A sale hearing is scheduled for the hospitals in U.S. Bankruptcy Court on July 31.
U.S. Rep. Lori Trahan, who represents Ayer, said Friday that she would “call on federal authorities, including the Department of Justice, to immediately investigate Steward’s actions.”
“Steward’s leadership should be ashamed of what they have done to patients and providers here in Massachusetts and across the country. Their predatory private equity business model focused on extracting every last cent of profit while ignoring their obligations to their hardworking staff and the families they serve. Today, patients in Ayer and throughout the Nashoba Valley are being forced to pay the price for Steward’s gross negligence,” she said. “Ralph de la Torre and his accomplices must be held accountable for creating this crisis.”
Sen. Nick Collins, whose district includes Carney, told the News Service that the state “should not allow an accelerated closure of Carney Hospital.”
“This would play into MPT’s hands and its strategy of selling the assets at an inflated value and walking away with a bargain. We must do everything we can to keep Carney Hospital open so that a qualified bidder can come along after bringing the inflated value back down to earth,” Collins said.
Sen. Jamie Eldridge, whose district includes Nashoba Valley Medical Center, called the facility a “valuable community hospital.”
“I am heartbroken to hear from the City of Ayer that @Steward will be closing Nashoba Valley Medical Center,” Eldridge posted on X Friday morning. “I am calling on @MassGovernor @MassAGO to continue working to prevent any hospital closures, create a transition plan, and enforce the 120-day closure law.”
Alison Kuznitz contributed reporting.