Attorney general will hold CHS to promises

By WILLIAM K. ALCORN

alcorn@vindy.com

YOUNGSTOWN

Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray said he will hold Community Health Systems to its commitments, including charity care, even after CHS’ purchase of Forum Health is complete.

He said his office has the authority to take legal action to enforce those commitments, “and we would.”

The hope and expectation is that Forum Health remains intact once CHS takes over, said Cordray.

To carry out the mission of access to affordable, quality health care, including indigent care, the Forum Health facilities and employees must be maintained, he said.

And, because Forum’s three major facilities, Northside Medical Center in Youngstown, Trumbull Memorial Hospital in Warren, and Hillside Rehabilitation Hospital in Howland, will be owned by CHS subsidiaries, it also is important to understand the corporate structure to determine who is making commitments and who is liable to live up to the promises, Cordray said during a press conference Friday.

Mid- to late September is the target date for completion of the attorney general’s review of the proposed $120 million sale of Forum Health to Community Health Systems. He said because of the cooperation of CHS in providing requested information, the review is ahead of schedule, and with CHS’ continued cooperation, the review should continue to remain ahead of schedule.

Cordray said the general goal of the review is to ensure that the new owner would provide quality, affordable and accessible health care to the community.

He said one area at which the review is looking carefully is CHS’ “general commitment” to maintain charity care at the level of that provided by Forum Health.

“We are looking for more specific information in the charity-care area. We are evaluating CHS’ commitment to employees and facilities and indigent care to make sure it helps carry the load along with other hospitals,” Cordray said.

Tomi Galin, vice president, corporate communications for CHS, issued this statement: “We are working closely with the Ohio Attorney General’s office during its review of our plans to purchase Forum Health, and we’re pleased with the progress that has been made.

“We’ve informed the attorney general that we would keep all three Forum hospitals open and make $80 million in capital investments over the five years following the close of the transaction.

“We continue to hold meetings with the unions that represent Forum employees and believe those discussions have been productive.”