To no one’s surprise, Steward Health Care filed for bankruptcy yesterday, putting the health of the eight hospitals they own and operate, and the patients they serve, in jeopardy.
Corporate greed has put the health of hundreds of thousands of patients and nearly 16,000 employees at risk.
With the declining health of Steward’s business evident for months, Governor Healey and her administration have been working to prepare contingency plans. They have set up a crisis management center to work with other hospitals and health centers to pick up the slack, if the bankruptcy results in reduced access to care.
But we shouldn’t be in this position - state laws and regulations requiring financial disclosures that would have provided early warning of Steward’s crumbling business plan were inadequate. Steward resisted demands by the State for financial data, and even rebuffed court orders that they comply.
We need to put more teeth into the reporting requirements that can serve as an early warning system of when health care entities are falling behind on paying their bills or encountering lower payments than expected.
