Heights University Hospital, the struggling acute-care facility in Jersey City, said Nov. 14 it will close immediately after executives at hospital parent Hudson Regional Hospital said they were turned down by the state a day earlier to get $25 million to continue operating.
Departments at the hospital including the neighborhood clinic, preoperative services, endoscopy, pre-admission, ambulatory surgery, the operating room and the dialysis unit will be reduced or eliminated and what remains will operate as a standalone emergency department. About 120 jobs will be cut at the former Christ Hospital, which was founded in 1872.
“Unfortunately, despite best efforts by the leadership at Hudson Regional Hospital, it was informed this afternoon that the State will not be providing the critical funding needed to sustain the operations of Heights University Hospital,” said Dr. Nizar Kifaieh, CEO and president of Hudson Regional Health, parent of the financially troubled Heights University Hospital.
“This will result in an interruption in tomorrow’s payroll processing and compromises its ability to execute the stabilization plan it was in the process of implementing. This includes our recent plans to operate a stand-alone emergency department, multi-specialty service practice and behavioral health. As a result, Heights University Hospital has filed a Certificate of Need for Closure with the Department of Health.”
At a press conference, Kifaieh, who was joined by Hudson Regional Health Chief of Staff Adam Alonso, said 120 employees at the hospital would not have positions at Heights University Hospital and would either be absorbed into the HRH system or they would cash out.
“We’re trying to absorb as many employees as possible,” Alonso said. “Some employees might actually be going to higher-paying jobs.”
Hudson Regional Health operates four acute care facilities: Secaucus University Hospital, Bayonne University Hospital, Hoboken University Hospital and Heights University Hospital in Jersey City.
The CEO said Heights University Hospital was hemorrhaging money because six out of 10 patients were charity care cases and the hospital had what he called “redundant” services provided by other medical centers in the HRH system that were costing HRH millions of dollars.
“We didn’t want to be here,” said Kifaieh. “This is a huge loss to the community to not have a hospital. We’re trying to save the hospital.”
Debbie White, president of the Health Professionals and Allied Employees (HPAE) that represents union workers at the hospital, criticized Hudson Regional Health’s decision to close Heights University Hospital.
”It was difficult to conceive of an employer that could be more harmful to its employees and its community than CarePoint has been in Hudson County. But Hudson Regional Health has surpassed CarePoint as the worst employer in Hudson County,” White said.
“Hudson Regional has made this decision illegally with no regard for Department of health regulations or the WARN Act. What will happen to the patients in this community? Their employees have been left without a paycheck for two weeks of work and without future employment.”
In published reports, the union contends that HRH did not comply with the federal WARN Act, which requires employers to provide 90 days’ notice ahead of mass layoffs. An HRH spokesperson said in September that Heights University staff had been notified of pending layoffs and that a WARN request had been made.
An HPAE spokesperson said there are 205 registered nurses working at the hospital. Health Professionals and Allied Employees, founded in 1974, is the largest union of registered nurses and health care professionals in New Jersey.
Kifaieh said, “our commitment is to have a health-care facility here. What service will it have? I don’t know. Not sure if it will be a non-profit or a for-profit.” There has been some speculation that the health-care system might sell off some of the property to be redeveloped possibly for residential apartments.
Alonso and HRH have not ruled out the possibility that the 150,000-square-foot property could be developed for larger hospital use. “Current zoning does not allow for us to build a new facility,” he said. “We’ll have longer discussions about the property with the city.”
HRH on Oct. 22 began implementing “a path to stabilization in order to ensure that it can continue to serve as an acute care hospital.” At the time, Kifaieh said in the statement that Hudson Regional Health would ensure that emergency services remain active at Heights University Hospital including an emergency room, critical care and medical-surgical services, adequate operating rooms, behavioral health, and other as it winds down some non-essential services.
Earlier in October, the hard-pressed medical facility received $2 million in stop-gap funding from the state to fund critical services for about the following two weeks. Kifaieh made that announcement along with Hudson County Executive Craig Guy and state Senators Raj Mukherji, Brian Stack and Angela McKnight. The three legislators requested an appropriation of $25 million to keep the health care facility open.
“This is a devastating setback for our community,” said McKnight in a statement. “Hudson Regional Health knew the severe challenges Christ Hospital faced when they acquired it, yet instead of keeping their promise to Jersey City, they are moving forward with a closure and possible plans for residential development that put profits ahead of our residents most in need.”
Hudson Regional Health assumed control of the former CarePoint hospitals in October 2024 and has invested more than $300 million into the system after CarePoint had entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
Despite those investments, the hospital continued to lose more than $1.5 million per week, which HRH said is “an unsustainable rate that jeopardizes Hudson County’s healthcare system.” HRH said 65% of Heights University Hospital patients are uninsured, low-income, or otherwise vulnerable residents, leading to low reimbursement rates, a situation further complicated by cuts in Charity Care funding and Medicaid.
