Today, Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH) Interim Director Utpala Bandy, MD, MPH and Rhode Island Attorney General Peter F. Neronha, the two State regulators empowered to oversee hospital conversions in Rhode Island, notified the parties involved in the proposed hospital conversions of Roger Williams Medical Center and Our Lady of Fatima Hospital in a letter (attached) that their application has been deemed complete to initiate formal review.
The two hospitals are operated by CharterCARE, which is currently owned by Prospect Medical Holdings. The proposed transaction would sell the CharterCARE hospital system to The Centurion Foundation, a Georgia-based non-profit company.
The Attorney General and RIDOH will now have 180 days to review the application under the Hospital Conversions Act (HCA), before issuing their respective decisions. Consistent with the standard process set forth by statute, the Attorney General's Office will make the application public in mid-January after completing a full review to protect confidential information of the transacting parties, in accordance with the provisions of the HCA. The review process will also include public comment meetings and hearings.
Under the HCA, transacting parties seeking the transfer of ownership of a hospital must first complete an Initial Application which is filed with the Office of the Attorney General and the RIDOH. Following review of the submission from Prospect Medical Holdings and The Centurion Foundation, the Attorney General and RIDOH determined that the submitted materials contain sufficient information necessary for the State to initiate its review under the HCA.