Financially troubled Dallas-based Steward Health Care has once again pushed back the sale hearing date for its hospitals in Arkansas, Louisiana and Massachusetts.
The hearing, which was initially set for Aug. 16, will now take place Aug. 22, according to court documents filed Aug. 14 and obtained by Becker's.
Steward, which sought Chapter 11 protection May 6, has been working to auction off its hospitals and physician group, Stewardship Health.
The for-profit health system received approval to close two of its Massachusetts hospitals, Boston-based Carney Hospital and Ayer-based Nashoba Valley Medical Center, by Aug. 31. A third Steward hospital, Holy Family Hospital in Haverhill (Mass.), is also at risk of closure after a potential owner altered its bid.
"While we wish we had more information about the bidders for these hospitals, and our members and the impacted communities continue to be kept in limbo, not knowing if they will have access to life saving care, we can only hope that these delays ultimately result in viable agreements with responsible new owners to protect the hundreds of thousands of our state’s residents whose health and safety hang in the balance of this process," Katie Murphy, RN, president of Massachusetts Nurses Association, said in an Aug. 15 statement shared with Becker's.
Most recently, Orlando (Fla.) Health entered into a binding asset purchase agreement to purchase Steward's northern Florida assets for $439.42 million in cash. Steward also entered into a definitive agreement with Nashville, Tenn.-based Rural Healthcare Group to purchase Stewardship Health for $245 million in cash.