Westbank Louisiana News

At a hearing on Steward Health Care, U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy (R-LA), ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, and Bernie Sanders (I-VT), chair of the HELP Committee, announced that the Committee will consider a resolution to hold Steward Health CEO Dr. Ralph de la Torre in contempt for defying a congressional subpoena to testify before the Committee. In July, the HELP Committee voted on a bipartisan basis to subpoena Dr. de la Torre’s testimony after his repeated refusal to cooperate with the Committee’s investigation into Steward’s financial mismanagement of its hospitals. The Committee will vote on resolutions to authorize civil enforcement and criminal contempt proceedings on Thursday, September 19.

“Today, we heard from nurses and community leaders who were impacted by Steward Health Care’s negligence and mismanagement,” said Ranking Member Cassidy and Chair Sanders. “We were hopeful that Dr. de la Torre would comply with our bipartisan subpoena and appear before the committee to testify to the harm Steward has caused to patients, health care workers, and the communities in which they live. Unfortunately, he failed to appear. We have no choice but to move forward and pursue both civil enforcement of the subpoena and criminal charges against Dr. de la Torre.”

If passed by the Committee, both resolutions will be advanced to the full Senate for a vote. The resolution for civil enforcement of the subpoena instructs Senate Legal Counsel to bring a civil suit in the District Court for the District of Columbia to require Dr. de la Torre’s compliance with the subpoena and his testimony before the HELP Committee.

The criminal contempt resolution would refer the matter to the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia to criminally prosecute Dr. de la Torre for failing to comply with the subpoena.

During today’s hearing, the Committee heard from four witnesses with firsthand knowledge of Steward’s mismanagement including Louisiana Representative Michael Charles Echols and West Monroe Mayor Staci Albritton Mitchell.

For months, this Committee has engaged in a bipartisan investigation into Steward Health Care's bankruptcy and its impact on hospital care delivery. It was quickly evident that understanding Chief Executive Officer Dr. Ralph de la Torre's management decisions is essential to comprehend Steward’s financial problems.

Steward’s bankruptcy has nationwide implications, impacting more than 30 hospitals across eight states including Glenwood Regional Medical Center in West Monroe, LA.

According to a report from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, a physician at Glenwood told a Louisiana state inspector that the hospital was performing “third-world medicine.” Due to management decisions resulting in limited resources at Glenwood, state authorities had forced it to operate at one-third capacity. One patient died while waiting for transfer because Glenwood lacked necessary treatment resources.

Glenwood is also West Monroe's largest employer and plays an essential role in community health and financial wellbeing.

“We need answers,” said Cassidy during his remarks at today's hearing. “It seems principal among those who can provide them is Dr. Ralph de la Torre.”

Dr. de la Torre initially indicated compliance with the subpoena but later informed he would not comply eight days before today's hearing.

“A witness cannot disregard and evade a duly authorized subpoena,” stated Cassidy as he announced plans for civil enforcement and criminal contempt proceedings against Dr. de la Torre.

###