The Pennsylvania Department of Health wants more details from a rural hospital that intended to close in less than three months. The unexpected news of the closing of Berwick Hospital Center caused turmoil in a rural community 100 miles northeast of Harrisburg.
The hospital owner is being required to “resubmit a more complete plan which includes a comprehensive approach to move toward termination of its acute care hospital license,” a state health department spokesman said Friday.
The hospital’s initial closing plan “was lacking necessary information to provide for an orderly wind-down of acute care services,” he said.
On July 15, the owner of the 90-bed hospital gave a 90-day closure notice to the health department, saying it planned to turn the site into a psychiatric hospital, according to the department.
Meanwhile, employees said they heard rumors but hadn’t been officially told of the closing, and that some community clinics had closed as of last week. Employees said they had taken it upon themselves to notify patients of the need to obtain their medical records.
They further said some patients were worried about how they would get medical care and medications, with employees worried patients would face long waits with other providers, according to reporting by WNEP-16.
SEIU Healthcare, which represents employees of Berwick Hospital Center, said this week it planned to reach out to local leaders and try to mount a community effort to save the hospital.
The hospital owner, Priyam Sharma, a wife-husband team that acquired the hospital in 2020, has sought bankruptcy protection, according to WNEP.
Berwick Hospital Center, located in Columbia County, is among the smallest hospitals in its region, taking in $22 million in revenues in 2021. For comparison, Geisinger’s main hospital in Danville, about 20 miles away, took in $648 million.
It has suffered steep financial losses in recent years, posting an operating margin of minus-19% in the 2021 fiscal year, according to the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council.
That means it lost $19 for every $100 it was paid for caring for patients.
During the fourth quarter of 2021, Geisinger Danville accounted for about 55% of hospitalizations involving Columbia County residents, with Geisinger Bloomsburg accounting for 28% and Berwick Hospital Center accounting for 4.2%, according to the PHC4.
The owner of Berwick Hospital Center also operated a hospital in Galesburg, Illinois that closed in January after the federal government terminated its Medicare contract, according to Becker’s Hospital Review.
Hospitals in Harrisburg-area ranked by U.S. News
Note to readers: if you purchase something through one of our affiliate links we may earn a commission.
Registration on or use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your California Privacy Rights (User Agreement updated 1/1/21. Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement updated 7/1/2022).
© 2022 Advance Local Media LLC. All rights reserved (About Us). The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local.
Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site.