Mass. Gov. Healey seizes Steward-run hospital in Boston in bid to keep its doors open

The Healey administration said Friday that it had seized a Boston hospital most recently operated by bankrupt Steward Health Care.

The Democratic governor’s office said it used eminent domain to seize St. Elizabeth’s Hospital in the city’s Brighton neighborhood, a move that will allow it to take control of the property and transfer the hospital’s operations to Boston Medical Center.

• Read More: St. Elizabeth’s landlords fight state takeover of Steward-owned hospital

As part of the legal process to take the hospital, Healey’s office argued that a potential shutdown for St. Elizabeth’s would create a public health emergency.

That’s because of the large number of patients the hospital now serves, and the knock-on effects to medical services across the region, the administration said.

The firms that controlled the hospital’s real estate had fought the takeover, rejecting what they say is the state’s low-ball offer for the property, State House News Service reported last month.

On Friday, Healey said that while one of the firms, Apollo Global Management “continues to put its greed ahead of the health and wellbeing of the people of Massachusetts, we are taking action to make sure St. Elizabeth’s remains open.”

“By transferring operations to Boston Medical Center, we will protect access to care for tens of thousands of patients and save thousands of jobs,” Healey said in the statement.

Healey’s office had previously announced that it had found new operators for five of Dallas-based Steward’s seven hospitals in Massachusetts.

Lawrence General Hospital will become the new operator for both campuses of Holy Family in Haverhill and Methuen, Lifespan will assume operations of Morton and Saint Anne’s, and Boston Medical Center will take over Good Samaritan.

These transfers of ownership are expected to go into effect on Oct. 1, Healey’s office said.

Two Steward-run hospitals, Nashoba Valley Medical Center in Ayer, and Carney Hospital in Dorchester, closed in August after Steward said it failed to find “qualified” bidders for the property.

Earlier this week, Healey’s office said it had convened a pair of working groups aimed at addressing the impact of those shutdowns.

On Wednesday, the U.S. Senate approved a resolution intended to hold Steward’s CEO, Ralph de la Torre, in criminal contempt for failing to testify before a Senate panel.

The Senate approved the measure by unanimous consent.

Members of a Senate committee looking into the bankruptcy of Steward Health Care adopted the resolution last week after de la Torre refused to attend a committee hearing despite being issued a subpoena.

The resolution was sent to the full Senate for consideration, The Associated Press reported.