Advertisement

Breaking: Patriot Ledger Reports Steward To Buy Quincy Medical Center

The Patriot Ledger's Jack Encarnacao reports here:

A for-profit investment group that recently purchased eight hospitals in Massachusetts has reached a deal to take over the struggling Quincy Medical Center.

Steward Health Care System, a Boston-based company established last year by private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management, will buy the nonprofit hospital in a deal approved Monday by the hospital’s board of trustees.

The deal was announced to Quincy Medical Center employees on Tuesday afternoon.

Hospital officials would not comment on the dollar value of the deal, citing negotiations that still need to take place with bondholders

It sounds like the hospital was in dire financial straits. Jack reports:

The hospital, which has a $6 million operating deficit tied mostly to declining patient volumes, is carrying $56 million in debt. The hospital just skipped a monthly payment on those bonds as it sought a partner to help stabilize its finances.

I can't help but note a bit of irony: When I went to patriotledger.com to read this story, what came across my screen first was a huge ad for Brigham and Women's Hospital — a "have" downtown hospital advertising while a "have-not" community hospital misses payments and is sold. Or am I reading in too much?

Read the Patriot Ledger story here.

This program aired on June 29, 2011. The audio for this program is not available.

Headshot of Carey Goldberg

Carey Goldberg Editor, CommonHealth
Carey Goldberg is the editor of WBUR's CommonHealth section.

More…

Advertisement

More from WBUR

Listen Live
Close