Closures could have dire consequences for the two areas they serve. Carney Hospital opened 160 years ago, originally located in South Boston, with a grant from Andrew Carnegie and a mission to treat returning Civil War veterans.
Today, the hospital treats a diverse patient population in the area, who speak Spanish, Creole, and Vietnamese. Carney also operates a stand-alone emergency room center in Quincy.
Nashoba Valley Medical Center was founded in 1964 to serve 16 communities in north central Massachusetts. The facility offers emergency room services as well as a range of other medical departments such as cardiology, gastroenterology and oncology.
Thousands use emergency departments in Carney and Nashoba Valley each month, according to Data From the Department of Public Health. The hospitals also host 70 psychiatric beds, according to a state report released in December.
In hospital-rich Boston, Carney’s closure would still leave city residents with dozens of other nearby health care options. However, the Nashoba Valley has only three other hospitals that provide acute care within 30 minutes. State health officials have noted that there are also nearby hospitals in New Hampshire.
“Closing any hospital is a challenge,” state Public Health Commissioner Ruby Goldstein said in an interview Friday. “Ayer and the surrounding communities will feel the impact of the Nashoba Valley shutdown.”
Gillian Price, a retired Harvard resident, turned to Nashoba Valley Hospital on Friday to treat an arm injury after a fall. Price said her arm was in a sling and that if it weren’t for the hospital’s emergency department, she would have had to travel 15 to 20 minutes to nearby hospitals in Leominster or Concord.
“I think it’s disgusting,” Price said. “We need these little hospitals.”
Several state lawmakers have urged the administration to find ways to keep the facilities running.
“I still hope the administration will do everything they can to keep the hospital open,” said state Sen. Jimmy Eldridge, whose district includes the Nashoba Valley.
Massachusetts Health and Human Services Secretary Kate Walsh said the chances of saving hospitals were slim.
“There were no qualified bids for these,” she said of the hospitals in an interview Friday. “The market spoke.”
Walsh said the state plans to offer financial support to bidders to build the state’s other six Steward hospitals. “There are great operators lined up to accept those hospitals that are in transition and that needs to happen as soon as possible,” Walsh said. She declined to name the qualified bidders, citing the confidentiality of the bankruptcy mediation process.
Steward said it has alerted state and federal agencies about the planned closures. The company called the decision to close the hospitals unfortunate and a “difficult and unfortunate situation,” adding: “We will do everything we can to ensure a smooth transition for those affected while continuing to provide high-quality patient care and we will continue to serve them.”
Public Health Commissioner Goldstein said the hospital system did not formally notify DPH, a first step required by state law before any hospital closes. State law requires hospitals to give DPH 90 days’ notice before closing a medical service or entire facility. Regulations require an additional 30 days’ notice, Goldstein said.
After this notice is given, the hospital system must submit a plan that includes a timeline for the closure and addresses how patients will be kept safe during the closure process. There are public hearings and the Department of Public Health must approve the closure plan.
Patients and hospital staff need this information as soon as possible, Senator Eldridge said.
“If the hospital is actually going to close, what is the plan to support patients, staff and the care people in the Nashoba Valley receive?” the Acton Democrat said.
The two affected hospitals have seen a sharp decline in patient numbers since the beginning of the year, when Steward’s problems became public and the company began cutting services while losing staff at some locations. Health care leaders familiar with the situation said the average daily patient count — colloquially called “heads in beds” — dropped 41 percent at Carney Hospital in Dorchester and 35 percent at Nashoba Valley Medical Center in Ayer from January to June.
State health officials described the closures as expected in an interview Friday afternoon. In June, Carney had just 13 patients in its medical/surgical unit. Nashoba Valley had just 10, Goldstein said.
Earlier this week, Gov. Maura Healey said she believed there were bids for all eight of Steward’s hospitals in Massachusetts. In a statement Friday, Healey blamed the company and its leadership for “greed and mismanagement.”
“These hospitals have long served their communities — and their closure means more than just the loss of beds, doctors, and nurses,” Haley said. “We want to assure the people of Massachusetts that we have diligently prepared for this moment and will take all available steps to help facilitate a smooth transition for affected patients and staff.”
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez is scheduled to review the successful bids at a hearing in Houston on July 31.
Steward said it received qualified bids to operate its six other hospitals in the state: St. Louis. Elizabeth Medical Center in Brighton, Good Samaritan Medical Center in Brockton, Morton Hospital in Taunton, St. Louis. Anne Hospital in Fall River, and Holy Family in Methuen and Haverhill. Norwood Hospital, which has been closed since 2020 due to flood damage, was not included in the sale.
This breaking news story will be updated. Material from previous Globe reports was used in this story.
Samantha J. Gross and Jessica Bartlett of the Globe staff and Globe reporter Stella Tannenbaum contributed to this report.
Aaron Pressman can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him. @ampressmanJason Laughlin can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him. @jasmlaughlin.
