On August 28, the Office of Health Strategy (OHS) issued a Preliminary decision denying Nuvance’s application to close maternity services at Sharon Hospital. The ruling concludes that Nuvance failed to establish five of the eight necessary criteria, including that there was “good cause” in closing of the maternity services, that there is a “clear public need” for the closure, Nuvance did not demonstrate how the closure will “impact the financial strength” of the hospital, how the closure will “improve quality, accessibility, and cost effectiveness of health care in the region,” and did not demonstrate that there would be “no change” in the care the hospital provided.
Nuvance has the opportunity to request an appeal by September 18. If no appeal is filed, OHS will render the decision final.
State Representative Maria Horn called the decision “a tremendous victory for the community and a recognition of all the thoughtful, knowledgeable, and fact-based advocacy, particularly from healthcare professionals that work at Sharon Hospital, for keeping maternity services open. The state relied heavily on those facts in its thorough and well-reasoned findings, and it will be difficult to refute.”
