Prospect to file ‘preliminary’ requests to close remaining Delco hospitals; leaders say ‘no final decision has been made’

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Crozer Health again finds itself on the brink of closure as funding dries up at Delaware County’s largest hospital system.

Prospect Medical Holdings, the system’s California-based parent company, said it intends to shutter Crozer-Chester Medical Center in Upland and Taylor Hospital in Ridley Park within weeks, if money runs out and there is no sale.

Company attorneys informed a federal bankruptcy judge in Texas on Thursday of depleting coffers with just enough cash to keep Crozer’s remaining two hospitals open through March 14, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

“We need to figure out how to make private equity pay,” Delaware County Council Chair Monica Taylor said at a press conference Thursday outside of Crozer-Chester. “There is no place in health care for private equity. I thoroughly believe that for-profit does not belong in health care. And we are here standing strong to support this system and support this community because it impacts us all.”

“It is infuriating to hear that Prospect has failed to keep their promises yet again to the residents of Delaware County, now that they’re done lining their own pockets at the expense of our communities,” Delaware County Council Chair Monica Taylor said in a release Thursday.

In a letter to employees, Crozer CEO Tony Esposito said that despite what was said in court Thursday morning, “no final decision has been made” about closing the facilities and operations.

The Texas bankruptcy court judge has ordered all parties to try and reach a deal, Esposito said.

“Prospect Medical, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and other interested parties are continuing to assess any and all viable alternatives,” he wrote.

Meanwhile, he said Prospect plans to file requests “concerning a possible closure” in the coming days, but added that these filings are preliminary and “preparatory in nature.”

“Our number one priority remains the health and safety of our patients, and ensuring that they continue to receive the critical care that they require,” Esposito told staff.

FTI Consulting, the court-approved receiver tasked with managing Crozer’s crumbling finances, is still working behind the scenes. Delco officials said any possible final closure date “remains fluid.”

“Allegedly, we even heard they voted earlier this week — the Prospect board voted earlier this week — to close this hospital,” state Sen. Tim Kearney said.

“Our county government has spent months hard at work to prepare for the possibility that these hospitals would be closed,” Taylor said. “We remain committed to an orderly, calm and comprehensive process to helping ensure patients are transferred to other facilities that can provide the care they need.”

The commonwealth of Pennsylvania and Delaware County have already contributed a $20 million infusion of cash to help keep the two hospitals open while Prospect secures a new buyer.

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro lambasted Prospect and the Foundation for Delaware County for not doing enough to find a long-term solution. Shapiro spoke at an unrelated press conference Thursday in Philadelphia.

“[Prospect’s] executives are making money and they’re screwing over folks in Delco and screwing over Pennsylvanians. That is unacceptable,” Shapiro said. “And this foundation is sitting on a whole lot of money that could help provide health care in Delaware County, and they’re not doing anything with that money to actually help people.”

Frances Sheehan, president of the foundation, told WHYY News that she is standing by Crozer’s staff who “have hung in through Prospect’s decimation of the system.” She said the entire community is a victim of Prospect’s business practices.

“We are the largest provider of maternal health services in this county,” Sheehan said. “Our housing services, our maternal health services, our nutrition services for women and children — all of them are at risk. The grants we provide to nonprofits in the community are all at risk already from the $30 million liability [Prospect is] leaving us with and are even more at risk if the survival of the foundation is in question.”

Shapiro also took a shot at other health care systems in the area.

“Penn [Medicine] has to do more, Main Line [Health] has to do more. They’re going to have to shoulder the burden of where these patients are going to go if Prospect does in fact shut down Crozer,” he said. “Instead of this problem landing on their doorstep, they should be more affirmative and step up.”

The governor said his office will continue to work closely with the Office of the Attorney General, which is overseeing FTI Consulting as Crozer’s court-appointed receiver.

“We have not left,” Crozer-Chester Nurses Association President Peggy Malone said at the presser in Delco. “We have stayed the course and we will continue to stay the course and they will not close these doors. This is our hospital. These are our people.”

Editor’s note: The Foundation for Delaware County is a WHYY supporter. WHYY News produces independent, fact-based news content for audiences in Greater Philadelphia, Delaware and South Jersey.