Mass. officials say Steward hospitals will stay open after Chapter 11 filing, urge patients to keep appointments

Governor Healy announced that Steward Health Care filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy early this morning and said the Commonwealth has been preparing for the possibility.

"This bankruptcy is something that our administration has been preparing for," Healy said, and she urged people to continue to seek care at Steward facilities: "Hospitals are operating as usual, and the Department of Public Health remains on-site at these facilities to ensure that they are providing the highest standard of care that all Massachusetts patients are entitled to." The governor said Steward operates eight hospitals in Massachusetts that collectively employ about 16,000 people and serve roughly 200,000 patients annually.

Secretary of Health and Human Services Kate Walsh said the filing does not change immediate access: "The hospitals that were open yesterday remain open today. The providers who were employed yesterday remain employed today, and the community care that you could access yesterday, you can access today." Walsh said the administration activated an incident command structure and has established a call center and a website (mass.gov/steward-resources) to answer patient and worker questions, with the call center scheduled to go live later in the afternoon.

Department of Public Health Commissioner Robbie Goldstein reiterated that monitors have been on-site and are reporting daily on staffing, supplies and patient care: "It is safe to get care in Steward facilities. The facilities are open. You should not drive past it. If you're having chest pain, if you're a pregnant person about to deliver, please go to the hospital that's closest to you." Goldstein said DPH will continue close monitoring to protect quality of care throughout any transition.

Attorney General Andrea Campbell said bankruptcy is a court-supervised process that does not permit Steward to immediately close and that state enforcement tools remain available. Campbell said the office is pushing for a patient-care ombudsman to represent patients and employees in the proceedings and is working with legislators on longer-term policy changes to limit sale-leaseback and other private-equity practices that she said contributed to the current situation: "If those efforts have violated the law, those involved will absolutely hear from our office."

Officials said they will send Massachusetts representatives to the federal bankruptcy proceedings in Texas and will make filings to advocate for Massachusetts interests, including patient safety and workforce stability. The administration acknowledged the filing could cause short-term inconvenience and said it cannot guarantee there will be no disruptions but emphasized efforts to preserve jobs and access to care.

The state asked residents to continue scheduled care at Steward hospitals and said it will provide updates via the call center and the mass.gov/steward-resources page. The news conference ended with officials thanking hospital staff and unions for their work and vowing to pursue transparency and accountability as the bankruptcy process proceeds.