Hudson Regional Files To Close Jersey City’s Heights University Hospital After State Funding Denied

Overview

• HRH submitted a Certificate of Need to close the Heights facility after New Jersey declined a requested state support package of at least $18 million.
• CEO Nizar Kifaieh said payroll processing for Nov. 14 would be interrupted and a stabilization plan, including a stand-alone emergency department, multi-specialty practice and behavioral health services, cannot proceed.
• A spokesperson said no closure date or staffing impact has been determined, and a prior state letter emphasized that a hospital cannot be closed overnight.
• Councilman James Solomon called for an emergency court injunction to block service reductions, while mayoral candidate Jim McGreevey urged an RFEI to recruit major health systems and proposed an Emergency Healthcare Continuity Task Force.
• The HPAE union condemned the move as illegal, citing DOH rules and the WARN Act, and said employees missed paychecks, while HRH has cited roughly $60 million in operating losses at the hospital.