Steward Health Care said it plans to sell off all its hospitals after announcing this week that it filed for bankruptcy protection.
The Dallas-based company, which operates more than 30 hospitals nationwide, said it does not expect any interruptions in its hospitals’ day-to-day operations, which the company said will continue in the ordinary course throughout the Chapter 11 process.
“Presently, the company is marketing all of its hospitals,” the company said a filing Tuesday.
Steward filed for bankruptcy protection early Monday.
In a news release, company officials said Steward took the step to let it continue to provide needed care to patients.
Steward’s eight hospitals in Massachusetts include St. Elizabeth’s Hospital and Carney Hospital, both in Boston.
It filed for protection in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas.
Despite the filing, she said, Steward hospitals will remain open and patients should keep their appointments.
Following its announcement this week that it had filed for bankruptcy protection, Steward Health Care stated that it intended to sell off each of its hospitals.
Throughout the Chapter 11 process, the Dallas-based company, which runs more than 30 hospitals across the country, stated that it does not anticipate any disruptions to the daily operations of its hospitals.
The company said in court documents that Steward started what it called a “phased marketing process” for the sale of its hospital facilities starting in late January.
The business stated in a filing on Tuesday that it is currently marketing each of its hospitals.
Early on Monday, Steward filed for bankruptcy protection. Officials from the company stated in a news release that Steward took the action to enable it to keep giving patients the necessary care.
In a written statement, the business stated, “Steward’s hospitals, medical centers, and physician’s offices are open and continuing to serve patients and the broader community and our commitment to our employees will not change.”.
Among Steward’s eight Massachusetts hospitals is St. Boston’s Carney Hospital and Elizabeth’s Hospital. It made a protection request in the U.S. S. The Southern District of Texas bankruptcy court.
In order to represent clients and staff during the bankruptcy process, Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell announced on Wednesday that she is advocating for the appointment of a Patient Care Ombudsman. She added that, in accordance with the antitrust laws in her office, she is able to examine any proposed sale.
The office is empowered to examine any proposed sale, and we would do so to safeguard consumers’ access to a market for high-quality, reasonably priced healthcare, the spokesperson stated in a written statement. We’ll deal with any legal infractions that we discover. “.
Politicians, including U.S. Senators, have taken offense at Steward’s problems in Massachusetts. s. Sen. The company’s former private equity owners allegedly “sold (Steward) for parts” and “walked away with hundreds of millions of dollars,” according to Elizabeth Warren and Edward Markey. “.
Governor of Massachusetts. On Monday, Maura Healey announced that the state had been getting ready to file for bankruptcy. According to her, patients should keep their appointments and Steward hospitals will continue to operate.
Healy stated on Monday that the Dallas, Texas Steward leadership’s greed, poor management, and lack of transparency are the causes of the current predicament. We’ll be collaborating to take action to ensure that this never occurs again because it’s an unfortunate circumstance that shouldn’t have happened. “.
The terms of Steward’s “debtor-in-possession financing,” which will provide an initial funding of $75 million and up to an additional $225 million upon the satisfaction of certain conditions, are currently being finalized with its landlord, Medical Properties Trust. “.
“Steward Health Care has made every effort to function effectively in a very difficult healthcare setting,” stated Dr. Ralph de la Torre, the organization’s CEO, in a press release.
His explanation of the falling rates during a period of soaring costs was one of the reasons he gave for the inadequate payment by government payers.
It will be easier for Steward to “responsibly transition ownership of its Massachusetts-based hospitals,” according to Torre, if the company files for bankruptcy. “.
In an attempt to stabilize its finances, the company disclosed in March that it had reached an agreement to sell Optum, a division of UnitedHealth Group, its national physician network.
