Los Angeles-based Prospect, the for-profit owner of Crozer, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last month and is working to offload 10 of its 16 hospitals. Representatives for the health system will appear in court Feb. 6 to ask for a 30-day extension of bankruptcy funding for Crozer or with a plan for shutting down its Pennsylvania hospitals, according to the report.
In a Jan. 31 announcement, Prospect said it plans to sell Crozer, a four-hospital system, to “a not-for-profit consortium of healthcare operators.” The proposed deal comes three months after a deal to sell Crozer to another entity — Bloomfield, N.J.-based CHA Partners — reportedly collapsed.
Gov. Josh Shapiro and the Pennsylvania attorney general’s office are pushing a plan that would put Crozer under state control with a receiver managing the hospitals, according to the Inquirer. The plan involves transferring ownership of the hospitals to a nonprofit once the facilities are financially stabilized.
Prospect did not respond to Becker’s request for comment, and a spokesperson for Crozer said there are no updates to share at this time.
For more than a year, the state has worked to preserve Crozer, which serves a low-income area with limited access to care in Delaware County. Prospect previously closed two Crozer hospitals in Springfield and Drexel Hill, Pa.
In a Feb. 3 hearing, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Stacey Jernigan pushed all parties involved to keep the hospitals open, according to the Inquirer. “No pressure, but I’m expecting people to pull a rabbit out of the hat and somehow make that happen,” Ms. Jernigan said.
The next court hearing is scheduled for Feb. 6.
Editor’s note: This story will be updated as more information becomes available.
