When Care New England bought Memorial Hospital of Rhode Island in 2013, the Providence-based hospital chain was seen as the savior of the Pawtucket institution.
But CNE’s grand vision for Memorial has not come to pass. The state’s second-largest hospital chain posted a $68 million operating loss in fiscal 2016 and is projected to show a $49 million operating loss for the just-concluded fiscal year.
A large part of that loss is an expected operating loss of $23 million in fiscal 2017 for Memorial, a 294-bed hospital that averages a daily census of 15-20 patients.
Opponents of CNE’s plan to severely curtail Memorial’s operations argue that Pawtucket and other Blackstone Valley communities need a locally based, full-service hospital. But there are many close by. In fact, five hospitals are within 7 miles of Memorial, including The Miriam Hospital, which is 2.7 miles down the road.
At a time in which the nation continues to struggle with containing increasing health care costs, it doesn’t make sense to maintain what is a clear case of over-capacity.