Greenwood (Miss.) Leflore Hospital has been in talks with the Jackson-based University of Mississippi Medical Center to take over operations in early December, but negotiations have stalled, partially because of the hospital's $5.6 million in debt to CMS, according to a report from Mississippi Today.
Gary Marchand, interim CEO of Greenwood Leflore Hospital, sent a memo Oct. 25 telling staff the hospital would need to make additional cuts for some services to continue into next year. The 208-bed hospital announced plans to permanently close the labor and delivery unit in early October, and also laid off 40 workers earlier in the year.
Hospital leaders had hoped UMMC would take over operations by early December, but Greenwood Leflore's outstanding debts have been a sticking point in negotiations. Greenwood Leflore owes $5.6 million to Medicare for advance payments made to the hospital during the early days of the pandemic, according to a report from The Greenwood Commonwealth, and UMMC doesn't want to take on the debt.
"In the absence of this plan, the closure of the hospital remains a possibility," Mr. Marchand wrote in the memo. The hospital is one of the largest employers in Greenwood and Leflore counties, with around 650 employees.