Plans to save Pennsylvania's Crozer Health system with long-term plan take positive step as deadline looms
Lawyers with the Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office signaled positive momentum for a long-term plan to save Delaware County's Crozer Health system on Wednesday during a bankruptcy hearing with Prospect Medical Holdings.
At a lengthy hearing Wednesday, a deputy attorney general told the court: "This is a very complex dance, and are cautiously optimistic we will have a long-term plan."
Attorneys said they are looking at Friday as a possible deadline to have a deal in the works.
The long-term plan aims to place the financially distressed Crozer system in the hands of a nonprofit to take over and run its two hospitals and other medical campuses in Delaware County. Crozer's parent company, Prospect Medical Holdings, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Jan. 11.
The state and county have already shelled out $20 million to keep the lights in the bankrupt facilities.
The health network was bailed out in February with a cash infusion from the state and Delaware County for a combined $20 million, but that money ran out in March.
Last week, the Foundation for Delaware County provided $7 million for an additional round of payroll, leaving the hospitals with an operational deadline of next Wednesday.
Peggy Malone, the president of the Crozer-Chester Nurses Association, said it's been rough working within the health network amid the potential shutdown.
"So it just continued the roller-coaster that we've been on," she said. "But again, anything that sheds a little bit of optimism and hope is what we're looking for — we're not leaving."
For Claudia Northfleet, who was just discharged from the hospital, the news of a possible long-term deal was well-received.
Jeanette Winston said Crozer-Chester Medical Center is vital to the community.
"I've got daughters that are asthmatic, I've got daughters allergic to peanuts and shellfish," she said. "My husband actually works at this hospital doing the housekeeping — it means a lot. I had my babies at this hospital. To shut this hospital down, with a big community — we need this hospital."
Winston is hoping that deal comes to fruition on Friday.
"I believe there's a way," she said. "I believe."
