NEW: Judge Approves Landmark Hospital Sale
Wednesday, June 01, 2011
A state judge has approved a plan for the Landmark Medical Center in Woonsocket to be acquired by Steward Health Care Systems in Boston.
Landmark is a financially struggling hospital that has been under court-appointed receivership for three years. Its sale has run into some opposition from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Rhode Island, which is owed $3 million by the hospital.
Three other potential buyers were turned down by Superior Court Judge Michael Silverstein.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST“There are a number of unresolved issues, including Steward negotiating a contract with us, as well as how Blue Cross Blue Shield of Rhode Island will be made whole on the $3 million in back debt that is owed to us,’’ said Blue Cross spokeswoman Kimberly Reingold.
She added: “Blue Cross Blue Shield of Rhode Island has been and remains willing to negotiate a fair and reasonable contract with any bidder, but we have not yet been approached on contract specifics since Steward re-entered negotiations.’’
Steward also is reportedly interesting in converting Landmark into a Catholic hospital, according to a report in Healthcare Finance News. Last fall, Steward acquired the six hospitals in the Caritas Christi system, but it has not required that other hospitals it owns become Catholic, according to the report.
If you valued this article, please LIKE GoLocalProv.com on Facebook by clicking HERE.
