Attorney General files to hold hospital owners in contempt over unpaid bills

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — Attorney General Peter Neronha said his office has filed a motion to hold the owner of Roger Williams Medical Center and Our Lady of Fatima Hospital in contempt over allegedly refusing to pay millions of dollars in unpaid bills.

Prospect Medical Holdings was ordered to pay unpaid bills to vendors at the two hospitals, which it was accused of underfunding.

Neronha said the company has not given “sufficient evidence” that it has attempted to pay over $17 million dollars in unpaid bills as ordered by a judge in June.

“The only thing more reliable than Prospect’s inability to manage these hospitals is our office’s commitment to holding them accountable and protecting Rhode Islanders’ access to health care,” Neronha said.

The Rhode Island Department of Health previously approved an application “with conditions” for the company to sell both facilities.