Rep. LeBoeuf calls for emergency hearing on Saint Vincent bed closure

PHOTOS/GRANT WELKER Members of the Massachusetts Nurses Association labor union form a picket line during their strike at Saint Vincent Hospital in 2021.

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By Katherine Hamilton

State Representative David LeBoeuf, who represents the 17th Worcester District, called for an emergency hearing on Saint Vincent Hospital’s bed closure in a letter addressed to Marylou Sudders, secretary of the Executive Office of Health and Human Services.

Dated Thursday, the letter calls for a Determination of Need hearing to “shine a light on the rationale for these closures and the impact this is having on individuals needing care.”

Monday marked the eight-month anniversary of Saint Vincent nurses striking with the Massachusetts Nurses Association union in an effort for better staffing ratios. While the union has won some of its negotiations, the strike continues due to the hospital denying some nurses a return to their previous positions.

“While St. Vincent’s may be a private hospital owned by an out of state healthcare conglomerate, the institution receives public money and is chartered to protect the health and wellbeing of my constituents,” LeBoeuf said.

The Determination of Need program is used to review healthcare facilities’ substantial changes in services, among other organizational changes. It is meant to keep healthcare costs contained and improve public health outcomes, according to Mass.gov.

LeBoeuf called the Worcester hospital’s decision to close nearly 100 beds in August reckless in reference to a greater bed shortage challenge faced by the Worcester region. Saint Vincent is owned by Dallas conglomerate Tenet Healthcare Corp.

“The UMass system in Worcester has experienced ‘negative’ beds and wait times in emergency rooms have increased exponentially. This decision by Tenet has not only impacted the City of Worcester, but the entire region,” LeBoeuf wrote.

Because the hospital said the bed closure was due to staffing shortages antagonized by the strike, striking nurses lost their unemployment benefits in early October.

In his letter, Rep. LeBoeuf said his office received reports from striking nurses of emergency department patients left unattended outside the hospital. On Oct. 26, the union announced it had filed a report with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health calling for an investigation of such events.