Local news
Governor Maura Healey supported the concept of a federal investigation into the chairman of Steward Health Care Ralph de la Torre this week as he works to maintain a number of the company's Massachusetts hospitals afloat.
Healey's comments got here in response to reports that the embattled de la Torre had recently been in France. Watch Olympic horse racing at Versailles.
“I am disgusted with Ralph de la Torre. He essentially stole millions from Steward on the backs of employees and patients, buying himself fancy yachts, mansions and now apparently luxurious trips to Versailles. I hope he gets what he deserves and that federal investigators will pursue him for his actions. Our government is working day and night to protect jobs and patients and to pick up the pieces of the situation Ralph de la Torre put us in,” Healey said in a press release.
Tensions remain high around Steward, which plans to shut two Massachusetts hospitals by the tip of the month. Employees and others have rallied support for Carney Hospital in Dorchester and Nashoba Valley Medical Center in Ayer, but their futures remain uncertain.
After Steward filed for bankruptcy earlier this 12 months, the Dallas-based company announced it might sell 30 hospitals nationwide. Healey said Wednesday she was “cautiously optimistic” concerning the potential transfer of 5 Steward-operated hospitals within the state, but stressed that the ability is “in the hands of the lenders,” she said. Steward operates seven hospitals on eight campuses in Massachusetts.
Healy told SHNS that there have been no qualified offers for Carney and Nashoba Valley and that she was “focused on saving five community hospitals.” The governor urged Steward last week to comply with a state rule that requires hospital owners to provide 120 days' notice before closing a medical facility. The company didn’t announce the approaching closures of Carney and Nashoba Valley until July 26. But Healey has also reportedly recognized that there may be little it could actually do to maintain Carney and Nashoba Valley afloat.
The Boston City Council passed a resolution Wednesday calling on city officials to declare a public health emergency over Carney's closure. The resolution received overwhelming support, and plenty of councilors spoke at a gathering concerning the hospital's importance not only to Dorchester, but in addition what the closure could mean for the remainder of the region. That resolution shouldn’t be binding, and Mayor Michelle Wu's office said afterward that such a declaration wouldn’t be an efficient solution.
The Ayer City Council also adopted an analogous resolution and called on Healey this week to declare a public health emergency over the Nashoba Valley closure.
More than 1,200 employees could lose their jobs if Carney and Nashoba Valley are closed.
Upon request from A spokesman for de la Torre said he was “unfortunately” on family leave and was “not authorized” to make decisions about closing or selling hospitals as a part of the bankruptcy proceedings.
“Despite the press reports, Dr. de la Torre has focused on managing the situation and, as far as the insolvency proceedings allow, keeping the hospitals open and providing comprehensive care to patients,” the spokesman told .
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