In August, two hospitals in Trumbull County, Trumbull Regional Medical Center and Hillside Rehabilitation Hospital, announced they were closing their doors, forcing residents to travel 15 miles to the nearest hospitals in neighboring Youngstown.
The hospitals had been managed by Steward Health Care, a for profit hospital chain owned by a powerful private equity firm called Cerberus Capital Management. Steward went bankrupt a few months prior.
The head of the Ohio Nurses Association at the time said, "The closure of Hillside is a tragic result of greed-driven hospital executives, backed by private equity, who prioritze their yachts and private jets over patient care."
What happened in Trumbull county is part of a pattern of casualties when Wall Street gets involved in health care, according to a new Mother Jones investigation, that details the downfall of Steward Health Care, and how patients and communities paid the price.
On Thursday's "Sound of Ideas," we'll talk about the investigation with Mother Jones reporter Hannah Levintova. And we'll hear from Ideastream's health reporter Taylor Wizner, who has been closely following the local hospital closures.
Later in this hour, we'll discuss summer events to look forward to, as Memorial Day kicks off the summer arts season. And, we'll hear the latest episode of our music podcast, "Shuffle."
Guests:
-Hannah Levintova, Reporter, Mother Jones
-Taylor Wizner, Health Reporter, Ideastream Public Media
-Kabir Bhatia, Senior Arts Reporter, Ideastream Public Media
-Amanda Rabinowitz, Host, "All Things Considered" & "Shuffle," Ideastream Public Media
-Aubrey Helmuth Miller, Upstream Drifters
-Craig Mast, Upstream Drifters
