The office of Gov. Maura Healey said Friday that the embattled Steward Health Care system has to get out of Massachusetts.
The announcement came after the state's deadline for Steward to turn its financial records to the state.
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"The financial information that Steward provided this week continues to be incomplete and insufficient," Healey spokesperson Karissa Hand said in a statement. "What Steward must do from this point forward is clear — complete an orderly transition out of Massachusetts."
Healey said earlier this week that Steward should transfer ownership of the hospitals and leave the state altogether.
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She's demanding Steward create an action plan to detail how they plan to address these financial woes, saying if they don't comply, the state will act by possibly freezing admissions to any of their nine hospitals in the state, closing beds and transferring patients to other hospitals.
In a three-page letter to Steward's CEO, Healey listed several demands, including ensuring safe staffing and supply levels, allowing the state Department of Public Health to put monitors in all of its locations and immediately release its financial records.
Steward — a Texas-based health care system — operates nine hospitals in Massachusetts and reportedly owes $50 million in unpaid rent.
Meanwhile, the financial crisis are showing even in the little things such as the shortage of supplies due to not paying their vendors. Workers at two Boston locations say patients have already stopped coming in assuming hospitals are closed or are concerned about the care they may receive.
"Sometimes it's difficult to get paper, water, some extension sets for IVs in the emergency room," said a health care worker during a Boston City Council meeting Thursday.
