NEW: Raimondo Gives Comment St. Joseph’s Pension Fund Bankruptcy, Kilmartin Refuses
Friday, August 18, 2017
GoLocalProv’s unveiling of the collapse of the St. Joseph Health Services pension bankruptcy sparked immediate comment from Governor Gina Raimondo’s office, but no response from RI Attorney General Peter Kilmartin.
Kilmartin approved the 2014 agreement that led to the separation of the fund from the hospital and the funding structure for the now bankrupt pension fund.
“CharterCARE informed our office yesterday (Thursday) afternoon that the pension fund had filed for receivership. The state has no control or oversight over any private organization’s pension fund. We encourage the receiver to work with all potential partners and explore all options to preserve hard-working health care workers’ retirement plans,” Mike Raia, spokesman for Governor Gina Raimondo.
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This collapse is one of the largest pension failures in Rhode Island in RI history. It will take months to determine the total financial impact on the pensioners.
The court has appointed Stephen Del Sesto as the receiver. He is a partner with the firm Donoghue Barrett & Singal. Retirees with questions can contact the firm via this email address.
Kilmartin Signed Off
According to sources close to the matter, somewhere between 2,000 and 3,000 pension accounts will be impacted, but the exact number of individuals affected is not known.
The triggering event was a decision by the Diocese of Providence to exit the system. The fund is not connected to CharterCARE or their parent company, Prospect.
It was Attorney General Peter Kilmartin who signed off on the deal and the pension payment and structure is now at the eye of the storm. At the time of the agreement in 2014, Kilmartin said, “The transacting parties have worked diligently to provide regulators with the necessary documentation and information throughout this review process to make this decision, a decision I believe is in the best interest of Rhode Island’s healthcare marketplace, the community, the employees, and most importantly, the patients.”
In 2014, Kilmartin said in his statement, “Conducting a hospital conversion review requires the commitment of a substantial amount of resources for the Office of Attorney General. I commend my staff for the time and careful consideration put into this review process.”
As part of the agreement to purchase the group of hospitals in Rhode Island under the state’s Hospital Conversion Act, CharterCARE made the required $14 million contribution to the pension fund as part of the global agreement.
