State and federal regulators have halted plans to reopen two closed hospitals in Trumbull County.
The Ohio Department of Health inspected Insight Hospital and Medical Center Trumbull and Insight Rehabilitation Hospital Hillside on Tuesday and found "several significant issues that need to be addressed before the hospital can re-open, to ensure the health and safety of patients," ODH spokesperson Ken Gordon shared in an emailed statement.
Gordon would not specify the issues and said a finalized report would not be available until next week.
Gordon said once Insight meets the requirements it will need to contact the state health department for another inspection to verify standards have been met.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services also ended its agreement with the hospitals this week, after it determined the hospitals were out of compliance with several requirements, including hospital governance, protecting patient rights and discharge planning.
CMS also found Insight Hospital and Medical Center Trumbull failed to meet some requirements under Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA), which mandates emergency departments to provide appropriate medical screening and care.
Insight Health System had planned to reopen the emergency room and other services this month after shutting down in March during a payment dispute with former owner Steward Health Care.
An Insight spokesperson said the system is working with regulators on what’s needed to reopen.
Meanwhile, nurses who were dismissed when the hospitals closed and were scheduled to return to work this week said they're feeling blindsided by another sudden change.
“We’re disappointed Insight can’t get it open, disappointed it didn’t pass inspection," said Tom Connelly, president of AFSCME Ohio Council 8, which represents nurses at Insight Trumbull. "The nurses want to get back to work, and we want to work with Insight to get back to caring for people.”
