Crozer Health's potential closure leads to disaster emergency in Pennsylvania borough
The potential shutdown of the Crozer Health system in Delaware County, Pennsylvania has led the mayor of one borough to declare a disaster emergency.
Ridley Park Mayor Hank Eberle's declaration took effect Tuesday, allowing borough officials to hire temporary workers, rent equipment, purchase supplies and materials, and enter into contracts for any performance or public work required to meet the emergency.
"I direct the Ridley Park Borough Emergency Management Coordinator to coordinate the activities of the emergency response, to take all appropriate action(s) needed to alleviate and mitigate the effects of this disaster, to aid in the maintenance and restoration of essential public services, and to take any other emergency response action deemed necessary to respond to this disaster emergency," Eberle wrote in the emergency declaration.
The declaration cannot be extended or renewed beyond seven days without the consent of Ridley Park Borough Council, as stated in the document posted on the borough's official website.
On Facebook, the borough wrote, "This action reflects the critical role Crozer plays in providing emergency medical services and healthcare access to our community. Local officials are calling for urgent intervention to preserve these essential services."
The emergency declaration comes as the future of the Crozer Health system remains uncertain. In an email Monday, Crozer CEO Tony Esposito announced his resignation, effective Friday, after serving in the role for five and a half years.
Last week, Crozer avoided closing but only secured enough funding to keep the health system open for seven to 10 days.
With the help of the Pennsylvania attorney general, Penn Medicine presented a proposal in which it will contribute $5 million and acquire lease interests at two Crozer campuses — Brinton Lake and Broomall — as well as certain medical equipment and furniture, a lawyer for Prospect stated. Delaware County is also providing $1 million, but the total money raised last week was short of $9 million.
An attorney for Prospect Medical Holdings, the parent company of the Crozer Health system, told a bankruptcy judge last week that some of the hospitals' "service lines" would be transitioned out as they work to find a buyer for the system.
Crozer has received a total of $40 million in stopgap funding since February. Delaware County officials are attempting to form a consortium of nonprofits to take over the system, but sources indicate the operation is an unattractive purchase due to its current annual losses of millions of dollars.
The Crozer system employs about 3,000 people and cares for thousands of patients.
