SHARON, Pa. (WKBN) – As the path forward for Meadville Medical Center to purchase Sharon Regional and the funding to keep the hospital open continues to be challenging, a development this week shows that plans are moving forward.
A filing entered in the Steward Health bankruptcy case in Texas indicates that the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is moving to mediation with Sharon Regional property owners Medical Properties Trust.
While Steward Health owns the hospital, MPT owns the land on which the hospital sits.
All parties have been in negotiations for the sale of the hospital but no agreement has been reached for the transfer of the “real property,” or the land on which the hospital sits to Meadville Medical.
A mediation hearing is scheduled for Dec. 11 with U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Martin Isgur. The scope of the mediation is not binding and is just to assist MPT and the Commonwealth reach “an acceptable sale price” so that Meadville Medical can buy it.
The Commonwealth has been funding the hospital’s operations since September as the sale to Meadville Medical has been hammered out. Recently, Steward attorneys asked the Court to give them some leeway, if needed, to start a closure of the hospital if the sale continues to drag out and funding for the hospital runs out.
The Commonwealth has agreed to continue to fund the hospital until a deal can be reached, however, a dollar figure was not discussed at a hearing last week, but previous court filings put it at $3 million, on top of the $4.5 million already spent since September. A hearing is scheduled later this month to update the court on those negotiations.
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