Two U.S. Senators wrote a joint letter to leaders of Brentwood, Tenn.-based Quorum Health, the 38-hospital spinoff of Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems, and Massillon, Ohio-based Affinity Medical Center Wednesday regarding their decision to close the facility Feb. 4, according to WKYC-3 News.
In the Jan. 10 letter, Sens. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, and Rob Portman, R-Ohio, urged Quorum Health CEO Thomas D. Miller and Affinity Medical Center CEO John P. Walsh to "take a step back from its announced closure timeline and instead engage with local stakeholders on potential means to continue operations at the hospital."
The senators said closing the facility will have an adverse effect on patients and leave them with no viable options to receive care.
"We were surprised [by] this announcement, and are concerned that Quorum's current timeline gives the local community — including patients and their families, employees, and other local stakeholders — less than a month to find alternative sources for both critical healthcare services and employment opportunities," the senators wrote. "This announcement and lack of contingency planning and cooperation with the local community threatens the health and financial wellbeing of the residents of Massillon, including the hospital's committed workforce."
Since announcing the hospital's closure last week, several leaders have voiced their opposition to the move. A group of at least seven physicians have also offered to buy the hospital.