Workers and union leaders at Regional Hospital of Scranton and its Moses Taylor Hospital campus are urging the state Department of Health to consider health care access and jobs during its ongoing review of a pending ownership change many see as a potential lifeline for the Scranton facilities.
They sent a letter Thursday calling on the department and state officials “to do everything in your power to secure our future.”
It comes after 2025 ended with the nonprofit Tenor Health Foundation’s acquisition of Commonwealth Health and its hospitals — Regional, Moses Taylor and Wilkes-Barre General Hospital — still pending. Tenor signed in late October a definitive agreement to acquire the hospitals, as well as associated clinics and outpatient centers, in a transaction officials originally expected to complete late last year.
News of the pending ownership change prompted cautious optimism among workers, elected officials and other stakeholders concerned the financially struggling Scranton hospitals could close absent acquisition by a new owner. It followed months of handwringing over their uncertain futures and concerted efforts to facilitate new ownership after a prior deal that would have seen the nonprofit WoodBridge Healthcare acquire the three Commonwealth hospitals collapsed in late 2024.
Hospital officials recently advised staff in a Dec. 31 email that the Tenor ownership transition would not be completed that day, the last day of 2025, “as Tenor Health and the Pennsylvania Department of Health are still working to finalize the necessary approvals.”
“The goal remains to complete the closing as soon as possible,” the email said. “We will provide updates as we have more information.”
In a Dec. 31 statement, the state Department of Health said it is “committed to ensuring patient safety and responsible hospital ownership as part of its Change-in-Ownership review of Commonwealth Health System’s hospitals in Wilkes-Barre and Scranton.”
“The Department continues to work with Tenor Health Foundation on its applications to operate hospitals in Northeastern Pennsylvania,” health department spokesman Barry Ciccocioppo said. “However, at this time, the Department does not have all the information necessary to complete its review of Tenor’s application. The Department is waiting for Tenor to submit requested information.”
It was not clear if that remained the case Thursday, as the department did not immediately respond to a request for an update on the status of its Tenor review.
In their letter to the department, the Regional Hospital workers described it and its Moses Taylor campus as “essential access points for acute care, emergency services, and inpatient treatment for our region.”
“Any disruption, delay, or uncertainty surrounding ownership has real consequences for the patients, families, and communities who rely on our hospitals, and for those of us who provide care every day,” they wrote, noting workers have received only limited information on the status of the ownership change since the beginning of the year. “While we recognize the Department’s responsibility to ensure compliance, safety, and regulatory integrity, we respectfully urge that those considerations be balanced with the urgent need for stability, transparency, and continuity of care.”
The letter also notes the workforce’s commitment to providing high-quality care and to “work constructively with any owner committed to sustaining the very best care at our facilities.”
“We respectfully ask the Department to consider the human and community impact of this transition and to do everything in your power to preserve healthcare access, workforce stability, and the long-term viability of our hospitals,” it reads.