West Suburban Hospital in Oak Park has suspended all patient care citing a “financial crisis,” with all ambulances being diverted to other hospitals and the emergency room closed as of Wednesday.
According to a statement from the Village, the crisis stems from a “year-long failure of the hospital’s electronic medical records billing system.”
“My heart goes out to every patient, family member and employee affected by this news,” Oak Park Village President Vicki Scaman said in a release. “Losing access to a hospital, even temporarily, is frightening, and we recognize that for many in our community, ‘West Sub’ wasn’t just the closest option, it was their only option. The Village of Oak Park stands with all of those impacted and we will continue to do everything within our power to support them through this uncertainty.”
According to the Illinois Department of Public Health, all emergency services were suspended WEdnesday, with all hospital services expected to be suspended by the end of the week. Hospital officials were assessing whether approximately 70 patients in their care would be discharged or transferred to other facilities by 5 p.m. Friday, the village said.
A report from Wednesday Journal of Oak Park and River Forest, citing an internal memo sent by hospital owner Resilience Health CEO Manoj Prasad, said the hospital does not have enough money to cover payroll and that would it be closing “temporarily.”
Efforts by NBC Chicago to reach the hospital, Prasad and Resilience Health were unsuccessful.
Resilience Health took control of both West Suburban Hospital and Weiss Memorial Hospital, in Chicago’s Uptown neighborhood, in 2022. Both hospitals have been plagued with issues in recent years, including broken air conditioning amid a dangerous heat wave.
In August, Weiss Memorial Hospital closed its emergency room a day after Centers for Medicare and Medicaid found the hospital was out of compliance with emergency and nursing services. Inspection records obtained by NBC 5 Investigates showed CMS made the decision to terminate Medicare funding prior to that, when investigators visited the hospital in response to a complaint.
At the time, Prasad said both Weiss and West suburban were facing financial hardship.
In a statement, Oak Park Village Manager Kevin J. Jackson described the medical center as an “Oak Park institution.”
“This interruption of services is not easy for anyone to navigate, and the Village will do what it can within its purview to minimize disruptions for those affected by the suspension,” Jackson’s statement said.
from NBC Chicago https://ift.tt/AcHBY7u
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