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The Pennsylvania Department of Health revoked Sharon (Pa.) Regional Medical Center’s license, effective Nov. 17, and ordered the hospital to close after its electricity provider moved to cut power over an unpaid bill, according to a Nov. 4 order obtained by Becker’s.
Penn Power sent the hospital a notice Oct. 26 stating it would shut off electric service on or after 8 a.m. Nov. 5 because the facility owed $638,526.99. The utility had issued an earlier termination notice Sept. 29, when the overdue balance was $663,526.99.
The department said the hospital had not shown it took steps to delay or resolve the shutoff. Moreover, the hospital’s failure to ensure basic utilities posed “an immediate, serious, and significant threat to the health and safety of patients,” according to the department
The order also banned new admissions as of Nov. 4 and suspended emergency services beginning 8 a.m. Nov. 6. The hospital must submit a full closure plan by Nov. 10. Tenor has 30 days from the order’s Nov. 4 mailing date to appeal to the commonwealth’s Health Policy Board, or the order becomes final.
In a Nov. 6 statement shared with Becker’s, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro’s office accused Pasadena, Calif.-based Tenor Health Foundation, the hospital turnaround company that owns Sharon Regional, of mismanaging the facility. The governor’s office claims Tenor has repeatedly failed to pay workers on time and let its debt climb to unmanageable levels.
“Tenor Health’s fiscal mismanagement is causing the Sharon community to lose a vital institution,” Rosie Lapowskya, a spokesperson for Mr. Shapiro, said in the statement. Ms. Lapowskya said that the administration had worked with Tenor for nearly two years and committed millions of dollars to keep local services running.
Radha Savitala, president and chairman of the board of Tenor Health Foundation, told Becker’s that she has requested meetings with the governor’s office and sought help through rural health transformation funds. Tenor applied in both funding rounds but received no money, she said.
“I’m surprised by that statement, considering that we’ve had conversations with the governor’s office,” Ms. Savitala said. “Nobody takes out debt just to take out debt. We took on more short-term debt to be able to make payroll several times and to meet expenses.”
The order came the same day Sharon Regional said it would suspend all hospital services as part of a restructuring. The hospital missed two pay cycles in October and paused inpatient care Oct. 29, though its emergency department had remained open.
Tenor reopened Sharon Regional in May 2025 after acquiring it from Dallas-based Steward Health Care, which sought Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2024. Ms. Savitala said the hospital struggled to rebuild patient volumes after reopening because many gastroenterologists, cardiologists and primary care physicians left during its closure. Tenor approached other area providers about an acquisition, joint venture or partnership but found no interest, she said.
“Unfortunately, a significant portion of the working capital we raised to support Sharon’s reopening and operations had to be used to fund liabilities from Steward Health Care, including those related to WARN Act and other acquisition-related obligations,” Ms. Savitala said.
“We made significant investments to rebuild the hospital, including $1.2 million in physical plant improvements, $1.3 million in IT infrastructure, and $624,000 in the hospital’s cardiology program,” she added. “These investments demonstrate our commitment to rebuilding Sharon, but restoring a hospital following a closure, particularly without its previous physician and referral network, proved more challenging than anticipated.”
Through the restructuring, Tenor hopes to keep operations suspended or minimal while it recruits staff and specialists, with the goal of eventually reopening as an inpatient acute care hospital, Ms. Savitala said.
“There’s no question that this community needs this hospital, including the behavioral health services that we provide for the Tri-County area,” she said.
Tenor is reviewing the order and has not decided whether to request a hearing, Ms. Savitala said. She added that Tenor has been cooperating closely with the health department.
The company still operates three other hospitals in Pennsylvania it bought from Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems in February for $33 million plus a $15 million promissory note.
The post Pennsylvania revokes hospital’s license, orders closure appeared first on Becker’s Hospital Review | Healthcare News & Analysis.
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