WARREN, Ohio – A new operator could be in the works for two closed Trumbull County hospitals, according to a U.S. senator.

In a meeting Friday morning with Trumbull County commissioners and other elected officials, U.S. Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, predicted Insight Health System would step aside and another operator would be brought in to run Insight Rehabilitation Hospital Hillside in Howland and Insight Hospital & Medical Center Trumbull in Warren. 

Moreno also said Medical Properties Trust, the owner of the hospital real estate, has “come to the table with a very generous offer” to transition the property to another operator that he didn’t identify.

Calling the closure of the hospitals unacceptable, Moreno said remedying the situation created by the Steward Health Care System bankruptcy is a No. 1 priority.

“In fact, look, I’ll just be quite blunt – since it’s only how I know how to be – this Ralph de la Torre character should rot in jail, and I will do everything possible to make certain that that happens,” Moreno said of the former Steward CEO, who purchased airplanes and yachts while failing to reinvest in the hospitals.

Steward formerly operated both hospitals, along with many others across the country. Steward filed for bankruptcy in May 2024. Insight, based in Chicago, acquired the former Hillside Rehabilitation Hospital and Trumbull Regional Medical Center in late October.

But both facilities closed in late March, furloughing employees. Insight cited a lack of payments from Steward that were required under its bankruptcy proceedings for the closures. Insight officials said they hoped the furloughs would last less than six months.

Several companies have sued Insight for lack of payment, including two that are trying to retrieve medical equipment from the Howland and Warren hospitals. One has since withdrawn its request with the court.

Moreno said the situation is very complicated, involving private equity firms, but his team and other officials are working to find a path to reopen the hospitals.

Warren Mayor Doug Franklin shared that two companies are in the process of applying to use AI platforms to provide billing and medical records services to Insight, which couldn’t reach an agreement with Steward and Golden Sun TSA Services, a records and billing transitions company.

But Moreno said he expects a positive outcome for the hospitals.

“Be optimistic about this. I feel really, really good about this,” he said of the possible deals that could lead to the reopening of the hospitals.

“Insight is obviously stepping aside, so it’s left open an opportunity for us to bring in a strategic buyer that can reopen and manage the health care system in the long run, bring the employees back, provide health care to the community,” Moreno said.

However, he also cautioned the process is only on the “3-yard line,” a football analogy reflecting it has a long way to go.

The U.S. senator also talked about reforming health insurance and getting rid of Medicaid abuse without reducing Medicaid benefits for those who need it.

Moreno said hospital operators need to have a strong balance sheet and not be in the business of gutting entities and selling off the real estate and assets while making millions.

Other officials at the meeting pointed to how regional cooperation helped bring a Kimberly-Clark plant to the Mahoning Valley, advocating a similar approach with health care.

Franklin said bringing Kimberly-Clark to Howland and Warren townships was all about working together. As a retired United Auto Worker, he lived through how that industry was gutted and jobs went elsewhere.

Franklin said the city is working with Foxconn to welcome it into the community and create an environment where investment is welcome.

Moreno also talked about the loss of jobs, calling the closure of the Lordstown plant the wrong decision by General Motors.

“It was one of the highest quality manufacturing facilities in North America,” Moreno said, adding the plant closing also took away 10,000 jobs and their families, which has impacted the community, the school system and businesses. 

However, he said the current administration is pushing to get those manufacturing jobs back from overseas, and the skills to make vehicles still remains in the local community.

Moreno said he has mentioned to Foxconn that only having a couple hundred jobs in that facility is underutilizing it.

“This is a 6-million-square-foot facility,” Moreno said. “It’s a jewel. It has its own exit off the turnpike. It’s got utilities. It’s got everything it needs. We need to make that a major manufacturer.”

Moreno said his team has had discussions with other auto manufacturers about the facility.

Other discussions around the table focused on the importance of building affordable housing in the area and the lack of infrastructure for sewer and water to build new houses. Moreno pointed out in Dallas, 5,000 new houses are started per year, while there are 5,000 new housing starts in all of Ohio.

He urged the community to continue working together and to reach out to his office in the future because it is easier to fix a problem like the hospital before it has closed.

Pictured at top: Insight Hospital & Medical Center Trumbull in Warren.