Skip to content
Star alert
CLEAN ENERGY & CLIMATE HUB
Skip to content

Senator Edward J. Markey Actions During Steward Health Care Crisis

Senator Edward J. Markey, chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Subcommittee on Primary Health and Retirement Security, has worked with state and federal leaders to hold Steward Health Care, its CEO Dr. Ralph de la Torre, and their corporate partners accountable for their corporate greed and mismanagement that hurt patients, workers, and communities.   

  • January 23, 2024: Along with the Massachusetts Congressional delegation, sent a letter to Steward requesting information on the company’s financial position following threats of hospital closures.  
  • March 7, 2024: Led a letter with Senator Elizabeth Warren to Steward Health Care CEO and Chairman Dr. Ralph de la Torre requesting financial information, including executive compensation, financial statements, Steward’s arrangement with Medical Properties Trust, repayment of debts to Massachusetts, and other financial activity.  
  • March 12, 2024: Invited de la Torre to attend and testify at Senate HELP Subcommittee hearing in April that examined the impact of for-profit companies on health care access.  
  • March 26, 2024: Led a letter with Senator Warren urging de la Torre testify at the upcoming Senate HELP Subcommittee hearing in Boston. The letter followed an initial invitation on March 1 and a public invitation on March 12, 2024.  
  • March 27, 2024: Held a listening session on for-profit forces in health care with Massachusetts state officials, health and labor organizers, and other stakeholders.  
  • April 2, 2024: Released a statement following de la Torre’s refusal to testify at the Senate HELP Subcommittee field hearing.  
  • April 3, 2024: Chaired Senate HELP Subcommittee hearing in Boston: “When Health Care Becomes Wealth Care: How Corporate Greed Puts Patient Care and Health Workers at Risk.” Released a legislative agenda calling for transparency and accountability for private equity in health care, including a discussion draft of the Health Over Wealth Act. Senator Markey also announced the State Based Universal Health Care Act to allow states to obtain a super waiver from the Department of Health and Human Services to provide comprehensive, universal health care coverage to all residents.  
  • April 16, 2024: Sent a letter to Medical Properties Trust Chairman and CEO Edward K. Aldag, Jr., and Macquarie Infrastructure Partners (MIP) CEO Karl Kuchel urging them to help stabilize Steward Health Care in Massachusetts.  
  • April 19, 2024: Sent a letter to six private credit funds holding Steward’s debt urging them to make loan modifications to help keep hospitals afloat.  
  • May 6, 2024: Released a statement following news of Steward Health Care filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.  
  • May 16, 2024: Joined a letter alongside Senator Warren and Chairman Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) to the Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra requesting it stand ready to provide support to ensure continuity of care in communities impacted by Steward hospital closures.  
  • June 17, 2024: Led a letter to Department of Labor Acting Secretary Julie Su requesting it support Steward workers and retirees as Steward Health Care proceeds through bankruptcy proceedings.  
  • July 11, 2024: Released a statement on the media-reported federal investigation into Steward Health Care on charges of fraud and corruption.  
  • July 18, 2024: Announced HELP Committee’s intent to subpoena Dr. de la Torre and conduct an investigation into the financial schemes that led to Steward’s bankruptcy.  
  • July 25, 2024: Introduced the Health Over Wealth Act alongside Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal (WA-07) to require transparency for private equity firms and for-profit companies that own health care entities, including hospitals, nursing homes, and mental or behavioral health facilities.  
  • July 26, 2024: Released a statement following Steward Health Care’s announcement of the closure of the Nashoba Valley Medical Center in Ayer and Carney Hospital in Dorchester.  
  • July 30, 2024: Led a letter to Steward Health Care, Medical Properties Trust, Inc., and Macquarie Investment Partners urging the companies to protect workers and guarantee continuity of care for people in Massachusetts following the announced closure of Carney Hospital and Nashoba Valley Medical Center.  
  • August 8, 2024: Led a letter alongside Senator Warren requesting information from private equity firm Apollo Global Management on the company’s role in Steward Health Care’s bankruptcy and urging Apollo to work to facilitate the sale of Steward’s Massachusetts hospitals. 
  • August 16, 2024: Released a statement in support of Governor Maura Healy’s actions to reach deals on transitioning operations at Saint Anne’s Hospital, Good Samaritan Medical Center, Holy Family Hospitals, and Morton Hospital to new operators, and for the state’s acquisition of Saint Elizabeth’s.   
  • August 22, 2024: Led Elizabeth Warren and members of the Massachusetts Congressional delegation in a letter to Dr. de la Torre and Steward Chief Restructuring Officer John R. Castello urging Steward to provide more than 1,200 workers facing layoffs with severance pay and the accumulated time off they are owed following the closure of Carney Hospital and Nashoba Valley Medical Center.  
  • September 4, 2024: Released a statement with Senator Warren following a letter from Ralph de la Torre’s attorneys stating he would not comply with the subpoena to appear at the September 12 HELP Committee hearing “Examining the Bankruptcy of Steward Health Care: How Management Decisions Have Impacted Patient Care,” for which de la Torre was subpoenaed to provide testimony. In that statement, Senators Markey and Warren called for de la Torre to be held in contempt if he failed to appear.  
  • September 5, 2024: Hosted a press conference with Senator Warren, Congresswoman Lori Trahan (MA-03), and labor leaders from SEIU1199 in response to de la Torre’s refusal to appear at the September 12 HELP Committee’s hearing.  
  • September 11, 2024: Released a new report titled “The Steward Health Care Report: How Corporate Greed Hurt Patients, Health Workers, and Communities.” The report spotlights patient and worker experiences, hospital quality data, and information on hospital closures in Massachusetts and around the country.