Healy says there is no bailout for Steward Health Care as financial problems continue

State officials stepped up their rhetoric against Steward Health Care on Friday as fallout from the company's financial struggles continues.

governor. Maura Healey said her administration is monitoring the unfolding crisis and making plans to stabilize the state's health care system.

The for-profit Steward Network — one of the state's largest hospital operators — is in serious financial straits and may be on the verge of failure, according to health care leaders and state officials.

“We haven’t seen a plan from Steward,” Healey told reporters after addressing the annual meeting of the Massachusetts Health and Hospital Association on Friday. “People should know this: Our goal will be to make sure that patients are protected, jobs are protected, and the health care system in Massachusetts is stabilized.”

It will appear later on WBUR Boston RadioHealey was asked if Steward would get a state bailout.

“No, Steward won't be saved,” she said.

Steward operates nine hospitals in Massachusetts in communities including Brighton, Brockton, Dorchester, Methuen, Haverhill, Taunton and Ayer. The company was founded in 2010 by private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management. Managed by Dr. Ralph de la Torre, the heart surgeon-turned-CEO who eventually moved the company's headquarters from Boston to Dallas and bought dozens of hospitals across the country.

Steward is a rarity in Massachusetts, where most hospitals are organized as nonprofits and operate in relative secrecy. It does not provide detailed financial information to state officials — as is required of all hospital systems — and is in a lawsuit to avoid releasing the documents.

David Seltz, executive director of the Health Policy Commission, a government watchdog agency, told hospital leaders on Friday that Steward executives were violating the law.

“Transparency is about trust, and it's about getting information so that policymakers and the public can understand how our health care system is performing,” Seltz said.

“The stubborn refusal by Steward’s leadership to deliver these legally mandated reports is a serious disservice to the public, to the patients served by this system and to its employees.”

Steward officials blamed low reimbursement rates from insurance companies for causing devastating financial losses at several community hospitals, including Steward Hospitals, and said those losses could “threaten their ability to continue providing services.”

The company declined to make anyone available for an interview.

Steward's problems have sparked a flurry of discussions among health care executives, public officials and labor union representatives all scrambling to understand and respond to the fast-moving situation.

Leaders of General Brigham's Mass said Friday they have pulled a group of their doctors from Holy Family, a Steward Hospital with locations in Methuen and Haverhill. Mass General Brigham doctors provide surgeries and other procedures at Holy Family.

“After hearing that some surgical equipment may not be available, we made the decision to reschedule our upcoming orthopedic and surgical procedures [gastrointestinal] Procedures at Holy Family Hospital. “We have contacted affected patients and are working to reschedule their procedures as soon as possible at a location near Mass General Brigham Hospital or a community hospital.” Tom Seaquist, chief medical officer at Mass General Brigham Hospital, said in a statement:

It's not clear which Steward facilities may ultimately remain open and which may close. A Steward Hospital in Norwood has been closed since the 2020 flooding incident.

Health care leaders and public officials discussed several options, including the possibility of other health systems taking control of certain Steward facilities, according to people familiar with the discussions. Other options include declaring a public health emergency, which would give the state more authority over Steward Hospitals.

doctor. Abha Agrawal, CEO of Lawrence General Hospital, said her hospital is ready to help patients whose care at Steward may be disrupted.

“Our most important goals, collectively, should be: How do we make sure no one gets harmed, and that patients and communities are safe?” Agrawal said. “We are ready, willing and able to be part of the solution.”

Deborah Baker contributed to this report.