South Boston lawmaker says hospitals will not be allowed to fail
Image | Courtesy of Google Maps
A Steward Health Care facility located in Brockton
Weighing potential impacts on hospitals in their districts, senators have been privately discussing financial challenges roiling the Steward Health Care system, according to one South Boston lawmaker.
Lawmakers are looking to obtain more detailed financial information from Steward as they evaluate potential interventions to safeguard access to hospitals, Sen. Nick Collins said.
"I don't think anyone wants these hospitals to fail," Collins said. "It's not an option."
Collins said he visited St. Elizabeth's Medical Center in Brighton and Carney Hospital in Dorchester, which is in his district, this week. He said hospital employees are stressed by the company's financial problems but are committed to serving their communities.
"What would happen if those two hospitals failed would be catastrophic," Collins said. "Having one of them not exist would be an absolute disaster. They deserve to get the support they need to succeed."
Senate President Karen Spilka has also been pondering the issues presented by Steward's situation.
"This is a very complicated issue, and it's unfolding by the day," Spilka said Thursday. "So we are working closely with the administration and monitoring it, and finding out what is happening with the various hospitals in the situation."
Gov. Maura Healey on Thursday called it an "evolving situation" and Attorney General Andrea Campbell is also engrossed in the matter.
"Our priorities right now are patients, protecting access to healthcare, as well as the jobs of those who make it possible to provide that care," Campbell said in a statement Thursday. "We’re currently in problem-solving mode, willing to use every power available to us to protect these priorities, while looking to a time in the near future to seriously address how Steward got in this situation."
WBJ Web Partners
Most Recent
Most Recent
0 Comments