Nashoba hospital hearing draws a crowd, but Aug. 31 closure unchanged

Hundreds of health care workers, first responders, state and local officials, and residents filled the main ballroom of the Devens Commons Center in Devens last Thursday night, Aug. 15, to attend a standing room only public hearing, voice their alarm over Steward Health Care’s planned closing of Nashoba Valley Medical Center in Ayer, and critique the perceived lack of interest from the Healey administration in keeping the hospital open.

Speaker after speaker testified that the planned closure of the 60-year-old hospital on Aug. 31 would be a health care and economic disaster for the region, depriving Leominster and Fitchburg, 15 towns, and the Devens Regional Enterprise Zone of vital medical services and jobs; increasing the time EMS crews will need to reach more distant and already stressed emergency rooms in Concord and Leominster; adding dollars to town and city budgets for fuel, maintenance, and, some argued, the purchase of additional ambulances.

The region’s legislators and officials, including the mayors of Leominster and Fitchburg and members of the select boards of Ayer, Groton, and Pepperell, spoke of their frustration with Gov. Maura Healey and her administration for their failure to take action. Harvard Town Administrator Dan Nason, Select Board member Charles Oliver, and Planning Board member John McCormack were in the audience but did not speak.

Healey has said repeatedly the matter is out of her hands. But area leaders have appealed to her to declare an emergency and take control of the hospital. At the very least, they say, Healey should insist that Steward be held to the requirement of 120 days’ notice for any closing and use state money to keep the hospital operating during that time.

Those requests are repeated in resolutions voted unanimously by eight towns. (See story on page 1.) In addition, nine Nashoba Valley fire chiefs, including Harvard Fire Chief Rick Sicard, have sent a letter to Department of Public Health Commissioner Robbie Goldstein detailing the impact the closure will have on their services and stating that the best course of action is to keep the hospital open.

In a brief interview before the meeting, state Sen. Jamie Eldridge, who represents Ayer and a number of surrounding towns, said, “We are not giving up.” Members of the local state delegation continue to search for someone to buy Nashoba, he said. And Salvatore Perla, Steward’s president of Nashoba, who was present for the hearing, later told the Press that he and his staff were continuing to search for a qualified buyer. “The bid process was done elsewhere, but we’re all still looking to get interest [in the hospital].” He added: “There are people around that want to help, but we need to get an entity to put a qualified bid in.”

Out of the state’s hands

Goldstein began the evening by stating, as he has elsewhere, that the matter is out of the state’s hands. He acknowledged that the situation feels unwarranted and undeserved. “It is unfair,” he said.

But he insisted the Department of Public Health “does not have the ability, nor the authority to prevent or deny closure of this hospital.” He said, “We cannot force a hospital to stay open.” However, he said, “It is our responsibility—our obligation—to see that access to essential health services for the community is preserved when Nashoba Valley Medical Center closes its doors.” Asked by the Press why the agency did not enforce the law requiring 120 days’ notice of a closing, Goldstein said the state’s only recourse is to fine them. “But they’re in bankruptcy,” he said.

The hearing was one of two—one virtual and one in person—organized by the state’s DPH, which is required by law to assess the impact of the closure and determine whether Nashoba offers essential services vital to the health of residents in the region it serves.

In a report released Aug. 21 as this story was being updated, the department concluded that the hospital “is in fact an essential service necessary for preserving access and health status within the hospital’s service area.” (See story.)

The department’s lack of authority to act on its finding prompted Ayer Select Board member Jannice Livingston to comment that the hearing was being held “simply because it checks the box that a hearing should happen,” drawing murmurs of, “That’s right,” from the audience.

State Rep. Dan Sena, who represents Ayer, was quick to comment. The finding “proves what we already knew,” he emailed Wednesday morning. “The company prioritized profits over people, and now we are facing the consequences of their mismanagement.”

“My opinion has not changed since I first heard the news about our hospital,” Sena said. “We must demand that the Healey-Driscoll administration take action to keep Nashoba Valley Medical Center and Carney Hospital open, and at the very least ensure that Steward abide by the 120-day regulation.”

Hospital employees given notice

At last Thursday’s jam-packed hearing, the number of attendees exceeded the 450-person capacity of the ballroom, and some had to be turned away. The room was filled with members of the Massachusetts Nurses Association and Service Employees International Union 1129, some of whom brought children, the red T-shirts worn by MNA members and the purple of 1199 SEIU health workers making visible their numbers. The event was covered by Boston TV outlets and regional papers including the Lowell Sun, Worcester Telegram, and Boston Globe.

The meeting grew heated at times. Steward’s chief medical officer for its northern region hospitals was repeatedly booed as he delivered a statement at the start of the meeting. There were shouts of “Shame,” “Do your job,” or “It’s a rainy day,” a reference to the state’s $8.1 billion rainy day fund that some speakers said should be used as “bridge money” to keep the hospital open while the search for a buyer continues.

Ayer Town Manager Robert Pontbriand received a standing ovation after a rousing speech in which he lambasted the administration for not working with the towns. “It’s been crickets,” he said. “Do what is right,” Pontbriand said, looking toward Goldstein. “It’s hard. It’s going to cost money. But here’s the good news: We’re all here to work with you.”

Meanwhile, the nurses and other workers at Nashoba have been given notice that their employment ends Aug. 31. Insiders report that most departments have closed and workers are leaving for other jobs. “Reporting for work is like going to a wake every day,” one doctor told the Press. “It’s very sad.”

The next battle is to ensure that employees receive the paid time off and severance pay to which they are contractually entitled.

Editor’s note: This report is an update of a story that first appeared online Aug. 16.