Crozer Health: Time is running out for solution to keep hospitals open
Last-minute lifeline of $7 million keeps 2 Delco hospitals afloat
The clock is ticking once again for the possible closure of two Delaware County Hospitals. Emergency funding will now keep the bankrupt Crozer Health System running for just another two weeks.
UPLAND, Pa. - The Crozer Medical Center of Upland and its companion smaller hospital, Taylor of Ridley Park, have a lifeline of two weeks and $7 million to cover payroll before its for-profit owner could move to shutter them.
Emergency funding will now keep the bankrupt Crozer Health System running for just another two weeks. Prospect Medical Holdings, a for-profit Los Angeles-based company, was planning to close the hospitals later this week.
3 hospitals on brink of closure in Delaware County, leaving thousands without healthcare or jobs
Three hospitals in Delaware County are on the brink of closing. Preparations are underway to stop operations by the end of next week.
What we know:
Stark details are emerging from a bankruptcy hearing Tuesday morning in Texas.
Dr. Monica Taylor, leading the Delaware County Council, tells FOX 29 she hopes the two weeks are enough to save the hospitals. She was asked if she is concerned two weeks is not enough time to produce a plan. She said, "It just didn’t come up two weeks ago. There have been people in the Governor’s and Attorney General’s office who’ve been working for a while to try to work out a sustainable solution."
Crozer Health: Time is running out for solution to keep hospitals open
A bankruptcy hearing was held Tuesday as talks continue to come up with a long-term plan to keep the doors open at two of its Delaware County hospitals.
Race against the clock:
Pennsylvania’s attorney general and the governor are now in a race against time to pull together a long-term solution for the Crozer system mired in debt and leaking another $10 million a month. The short-term deal has led Crozer’s owner, Prospect Medical Holdings of California, to put on hold its efforts to close the hospitals by Friday. But in Texas Tuesday morning, Prospect’s attorney suggested the company would return to the possible closure of Taylor and Crozer if there’s no long-term agreement by late March.
A source with knowledge of the issue says local health systems including Penn Medicine and Mainline Health have been involved in talks about Crozer with no agreement on a plan. A union leader says 900 nursing jobs hang in the balance.
What they're saying:
"We are going to fight like hell to keep this hospital open. Nobody is going to take this from us an our community. Our patients have no voice and Prospect Medical came in here counting on the fact they were going into an impoverished neighborhood where people had no voices and they were going to destroy us and take this health system from us," said Peggy Malone, RN, President, Crozer-Chester Nurses Association. "Our hope is that some of these larger systems surrounding Crozer will step in and help us, and they will help to rebuild our reputation, help to provide the services we’ve lost again."
"These aren’t just patients. These are our family. We know them by name. By faces. They know us. They know when we walk in the door we are going to care for them like they are our family," said Kyle Lombardi, Crozer Radiology Technician.
"We pray, oh God, that you will intercede right now. We pray right now, oh God, that you will touch the hearts of the people that make decisions. Oh God, that their heart will be open and mindful to do no harm," said Chaplain Amanda Johnson.
Some are even calling for criminal charges against the for-profit California company.
"I"m calling on our Attorney General and our DA here in Delco to look into criminal charges against the CEO who stole $90 million dollars away from this place," said State Senator John Kane of Chester.
Big picture view:
The closure would mean the loss of more than 3,200 jobs and leave part of Delaware County without critical services like a trauma center or burn unit. A Crozer emergency department doctor, Max Cooper, says cuts to his department has meant the difference between life and death recently for a young gunshot victim.
"And while they did not pull the trigger, the disinvestment in this facility and the contraction of EMS care because of Prospect Medical Holdings killed that young man and they need to be held responsible," Cooper said.
And with time running out those fighting for their hospital say they’ll keep fighting.
"Let me tell you Prospect. You messed with the wrong town. This is Delco and this is what we do!!"" said Malone.
FOX 29 has repeatedly asked Prospect Medical Holdings for a comment or statement regarding the closures. We have not received a response.Taylor of the County Council said, "Understanding what the services are they provide to our community, the access to care that they are able to provide, knowing the impact - I just can’t imagine us without them."
What's next:
The bankruptcy judge has asked for an update in court on Wednesday.