Employees of MetroSouth Medical Center in Blue Island, Ill., and state lawmakers are urging regulators to delay a Sept. 17 vote on the hospital's future, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
Hospital staff and politicians are accusing the hospital's owner, Brentwood, Tenn.-based Quorum Health, of misleading the Illinois Health Facilities and Services Review Board into approving the hospital's closure. Quorum announced in June that it filed an application with the review board to close the 314-bed hospital. Although the closure is still pending review, Quorum said it plans to close the hospital by Sept. 30.
A potential buyer recently claimed Quorum refused to negotiate a sale of MetroSouth Medical, although Quorum said no parties have shown interest in taking over the hospital "on acceptable terms."
"We can confirm we have had conversations with numerous third parties about transferring the hospital property and assets," Quorum said in an emailed statement. "Simply put, we have worked to give the hospital away to a qualified operator for several months. While we cannot disclose the details of any of our conversations due to a confidentiality agreement, we can confirm we have not been able to agree to terms with any buyer willing to commit to a binding transaction that would continue to operate MetroSouth."
State Rep. Bob Rita, D-Blue Island, called on the review board to delay the hospital's closure and force Quorum to renegotiate with organizations interested in buying the hospital, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
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