Bankrupt Steward’s Aim To Sell Hospitals By June May Not Be ‘Feasible’
Steward Health Care is attempting to offload its 31 hospitals after declaring bankruptcy earlier this week. Court filing also revealed that the company is $9 billion in debt. The upheaval has left many patients in a precarious position.
Reuters:
Bankrupt Steward Health Puts Its Hospitals Up For Sale, Discloses $9 Bln In Debt
Bankrupt Steward Health Care has put all of its 31 U.S. hospitals up for sale, hoping to finalize transactions by the end of the summer to address its $9 billion in total liabilities, its attorneys said at a Tuesday court hearing in Houston. Steward, which filed for bankruptcy protection on Monday, hopes to keep all of its hospitals open over the long term, Steward attorney Ray Schrock told U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Chris Lopez, who is overseeing the Chapter 11 proceedings. (Knauth, 5/7)
Modern Healthcare:
What Steward Health Care’s Bankruptcy Means For Patient Care
Massachusetts policymakers hope Steward Health Care’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization will expedite its exit from the state. Steward Health Care filed for Chapter 11 Monday, a move some industry observers expected as the for-profit hospital chain’s outstanding rent and vendor payments piled up. State lawmakers in Massachusetts and elsewhere have worked to pass laws aimed at preventing a financial spiral akin to Steward. (Kacik, 5/7)
In other news about the troubled health care industry —
Modern Healthcare:
Kaiser Permanente Layoffs Hit 76 IT, Administrative Employees
Kaiser Permanente plans to lay off another 76 employees in late June, bringing the total to about 350 employees laid off since November. The most recent layoffs are effective June 21 and will include IT and marketing employees in California, according to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification filed April 22. Kaiser, which cited cost-cutting efforts, said in a statement Tuesday it will provide severance and career support for affected employees and help transition some to other roles. (Hudson, 5/7)
Bloomberg:
Kenvue To Cut About 4% Of Workforce As Services For J&J Expire
Kenvue Inc. shares rose after the consumer health company announced a roughly 4% reduction in its global workforce as part of an efficiency plan intended to make it more competitive. The cuts come as services provided to Kenvue by Johnson & Johnson are phased out as part of last year’s spin off from the pharmaceutical company. Kenvue, which didn’t offer details about which services from J&J were ending, expects to incur pre-tax restructuring costs of $275 million in each of the fiscal years 2024 and 2025 as a result of the cuts. (Garcia and Patton, 5/7)
Bloomberg:
CVS Starts Bond Sale Days After Cutting 2024 Outlook
CVS Health Corp. is selling $5 billion worth of bonds less than a week after shares plunged the most since 2009 on a downbeat quarterly report and cut 2024 outlook, joining a bevy of firms hitting the debt market following earnings season. The drug-store heavyweight and health insurer is offering notes in five parts, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. (Mutua and Rutherford, 5/7)
WJCT:
Jacksonville-Based Baptist Health Agrees To $1.5 Million Settlement
Baptist Health System will pay $1.5 million to settle allegations involving discounts offered to some Medicare beneficiaries. The health system, based in Jacksonville, led its subsidiaries to offer discounts to patients to induce them to buy services reimbursed by federal health care programs or for referrals to those services, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. (Scanlan, 5/7)
Stat:
Endo Health Ordered By DOJ To Pay $1.5 Billion In Opioid Criminal Case
In the second-largest fine ever levied on a pharmaceutical company, Endo Health Solutions was ordered to pay nearly $1.1 billion in criminal penalties and another $450 million in criminal forfeiture for illegally marketing its Opana ER prescription opioid. (Silverman, 5/7)
