Resilience Healthcare CEO Manoj Prasad, MD, PhD, said that he hopes to reopen the system’s West Suburban Medical Center in Oak Park, Ill., by early July during an April 1 news conference.
“To make that a reality, we need the state of Illinois to help. For months, we have requested financial assistance and relief,” Dr. Prasad said during the conference. “We are asking the state to work with us to provide the bridge this hospital needs to get back on its feet.”
The 234-bed safety-net hospital suspended patient services March 27 due to payroll challenges tied to a failed EMR system transition that began around one year ago, which left the hospital collecting approximately 10 cents on every dollar it was owed.
“For 12 months, this hospital operated on approximately 10% of its normal revenue,” Dr. Prasad said.
Dr. Prasad said Resilience has identified the root cause of the billing issue and deployed a team of nearly 120 people to process more than 120,000 claims. The patient care suspension was in an effort to dedicate resources to the recovery effort, he said.
Dr. Prasad said West Suburban was already in financial distress when Resilience acquired it in December 2022 to prevent its then closure. The hospital had lost $38 million that year, and held more than $60 million in unpaid vendor debt. Over the next two years, Resilience reduced vendor debt by one-third and brought the hospital close to break-even without outside investors or lenders.
West Suburban’s closure comes after its sister hospital, Chicago-based Weiss Memorial Hospital, closed Aug. 8 after CMS terminated its Medicare participation. Insight Hospital & Medical Center Chicago, part of Flint, Mich.-based Insight Health System, and formerly known as Mercy Hospital & Medical Center, has also offered to help West Suburban maintain its services.
“[The Illinois Department of Health’s] primary concern is for the wellbeing of patients and ensuring they retain access to healthcare services in their community, a spokesperson for the state’s DOH said in a statement shared with Becker’s. “Any attempt to reopen must be accompanied by a full and detailed plan to provide for quality care and safety while complying with applicable law. We will review any such proposal with all due diligence.”
The Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services also said in a statement shared with Becker’s that it has provided financial and operational support to West Suburban over the years, and is prioritizing patient safety in response to the hospital’s suspension of services.
West Suburban owes more than $50 million in tax arrears to the state, the statement said. The hospital entered into a signed agreement committing to pay current taxes beginning in September 2025 and to begin paying down back taxes in January 2026, but neither payment was made. HFS said it initiated recoupments in December 2025 after West Suburban breached those repayment terms, pursuant to state law.
HFS also provided a $20 million advance payment to Resilience Healthcare in January 2023 to support their transition in operations from El Segundo, Calif.-based Pipeline Health System, and another $10 million advance payment in April 2025 to help alleviate financial pressures related to their EMR transition. No repayments have been received, the statement said.
“West Suburban has continued to receive Medicaid payments. In addition to Medicaid claims payments for services provided and add‑on payments based on utilization, they receive roughly $130,000 in monthly state directed payments funded by the tax after recoupments,” the statement said.
Editor’s Note: This story was updated on April 3 at 9:30 a.m. CT.
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