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Waltham Hospital on the Verge of a New Life
CareGroup Commits to Negotiate Agreement with Save Waltham Hospital
Coalition By the End of the Week
Late last night, representatives from CareGroup and the Coalition
to Save Waltham Hospital released a joint statement that includes
a commitment by the parties to reach an agreement by the end of this
week to keep the hospital open. The Coalition to Save Waltham Hospital,
with significant financial support from Waltham real estate developer
Roy McDowell, has been negotiating with CareGroup over the last three
days, to develop a plan that would allow the transfer of the facility
from CareGroup to the Coalition. Despite the negative findings of
the Hunter Group, a consultant paid by CareGroup to evaluate the future
prospects of the hospital, the statement by CareGroup acknowledges
the "determination" of the coalition to keep this hospital open and
viable.
Keeping the 116-year-old Waltham Hospital open has been a community-wide
effort involving thousands of citizens, employees, nurses and physicians,
with support from health care advocacy groups and policy makers.
The Department of Public Health, after a jam-packed public hearing
on Feb. 11 at Waltham High School, has issued a ruling that every
service at Waltham Hospital is "essential" to the health and safety
of the community. Closing the facility would result in server hardship
on the Waltham community, while causing severe problems for emergency
rooms in surrounding hospitals, and further crippling the mental health
system which depends on Waltham Hospital's 43 psychiatric beds. If
the Coalition can complete an agreement with CareGroup, it will develop
a six-month business plan and make arrangements for the transfer of
the hospital from CareGroup to the Coalition in the coming months.
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