Boston Globe: One year after Steward bankruptcy, Warren, Markey demand criminal probe

One year after Steward Health Care filed for bankruptcy protection, Massachusetts lawmakers are renewing calls for the Justice Department to take action against the company’s chief executive, Dr. Ralph de la Torre.

Despite the closure of two hospitals in Massachusetts, hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars being spent to sustain Steward’s other flailing hospitals, and millions of dollars still owed and being clawed back from Massachusetts businesses, de la Torre has yet to be held accountable, wrote Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey in a letter to US Attorney General Pam Bondi on Tuesday.

In particular, they wrote, the health care executive refused to testify before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions in September despite a Congressional subpoena. And despite a unanimous vote to hold de la Torre in contempt of Congress, the Department of Justice has yet to act.

“Prosecution of Dr. de la Torre is now in the hands of DOJ, which has the power to hold him accountable for his failure to appear before Congress,” said the letter. “As evidenced by the unanimous contempt finding, the Senate believes this matter is serious, meriting a criminal investigation by the Department. We urge DOJ to give appropriate weight and consideration to the bipartisan and unanimous nature of this referral."

The criminal contempt charge, the first by the committee in over 50 years, was referred to the US Attorney for the District of Columbia, who would decide whether to prosecute de la Torre. If found guilty, de la Torre could spend up to 12 months in prison. Shortly after he was charged, De la Torre sued members of the Senate HELP Committee, claiming that the lawmakers unlawfully violated his constitutional rights. The case remains ongoing.

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Read the full article here.

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