Steward CEO faces criminal contempt resolution by Senate committee

Photo: Jeremy Walke/Getty Images

The Senate Help, Education, Labor & Pensions Committee is scheduled to meet in an executive session on Thursday at 10 a.m. ET on a Contempt Resolution against Steward Health CEO Dr. Ralph de la Torre.

HELP Committee Chairman Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), and Ranking Member Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) last week announced that, due to de la Torre's failure to comply with the committee's subpoena to appear on Sept. 12, members would vote to adopt two resolutions: one for civil enforcement and another for certification to the United States Attorney for criminal contempt.

The committee is expected to direct the Senate Legal Counsel to bring a civil action to enforce a subpoena and to authorize the president of the Senate to certify a committee report on the refusal of de la Torre to appear to testify.

If passed by the committee, both resolutions would advance to the full Senate for a vote. 

WHY THIS MATTERS

Before de la Torre's scheduled appearance, his attorney Alexander Merton, a partner at Quinn Emanuel, sent a letter to the committee saying it would be inappropriate for his client to appear while bankruptcy proceedings were ongoing. He suggested the hearing be rescheduled.

Sanders replied that the committee would not accept the postponement.

"This committee intends to move forward aggressively to compel Dr. de la Torre to testify to the gross mismanagement of Steward Health Care," Sanders said by statement earlier this month. "It is time for Dr. de la Torre to get off of his $40 million yacht and explain to the American people how much he has gained financially while bankrupting the hospitals he manages."

In an investigative story published Sunday, Sept. 15, The Boston Globe said lack of resources and staffing at Carney Hospital in Dorchester, Massachusetts, caused the death of one patient. At other hospitals, surgeries have been canceled because unpaid vendors refused to deliver equipment and medical tests, such as cancer biopsies, are routinely delayed, the report said. 

Carney Hospital and another in Massachusetts have since closed.

THE LARGER TREND

The closure of the two hospitals in Massachusetts resulted in over 1,200 layoffs.

Sales of Steward's other 29 hospitals were delayed.

In another setback for the troubled health system, Optum withdrew from a deal to buy the Steward Health Care physician group in Massachusetts.

Optum's purchase of the physician group was one step in a planned bankruptcy restructuring process to sell all of its 31 hospitals.

ON THE RECORD

"Today, we heard from nurses and community leaders who were impacted by Steward Health Care's negligence and mismanagement," said Sanders and Cassidy by statement on Sept. 12. "We were hopeful that Dr. de la Torre would comply with our bipartisan subpoena and appear before the committee, to testify to the harm Steward has caused to patients, healthcare workers, and the communities in which they live. Unfortunately, he failed to appear. We have no choice but to move forward and pursue both civil enforcement of the subpoena and criminal charges against Dr. de la Torre."

Email the writer: SMorse@himss.org

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