WARREN, Ohio – The emergency room at Insight Hospital & Medical Center Trumbull has closed, and all inpatient and outpatient services at Trumbull, as well as at Insight Rehabilitation Hospital Hillside in Howland, have been “paused.”

According to a letter given to employees, the emergency room closed at 3 p.m. Thursday. 

At 1 p.m., patients and others could be seen walking in and out of the emergency room doors, But a person at the security desk said he could not comment on the rumored closing of the emergency room.

Employees at the Warren hospital and Insight Rehabilitation Hospital Hillside in Howland were verbally being told to stay home. Written confirmation came Thursday afternoon.

“Due to additional abrupt developments in Steward Health Care’s bankruptcy proceedings and the mounting lack of transferred dollars owed for healthcare services delivered to patients at Trumbull and Hillside hospitals, all inpatient, outpatient and ER services are paused as of 3 p.m. today, March 27. Current patients are being transferred and future appointments are canceled in the interest of patient safety,” a letter from an Insight spokesperson states.

“While the plan remains in place to redesign the hospitals’ operations fully independent of Steward, we apologize for the confusion this transition has caused the community and for the undue burden it has placed on patients and employees,” the letter states.

No WARN Act notices have been issued.

SEIU 1199 WV/KY/OH, which represents nearly 150 employees at Insight Trumbull, issued a statement Thursday saying employees arriving for work were “shocked” to learn Insight had abruptly stopped all operations at 3 p.m. without warning.

“Members have worked diligently through Stewards poor management, bankruptcy and sale of the hospital. … Now they are concerned whether or not they will receive their next paycheck and be able to provide for their families,” the SEIU says.

SEIU employees are respiratory therapists, pharmacists, med techs, radiological techs, social workers, dieticians, switchboard operators, rehabilitation service workers and additional classifications.

“The SEIU 1199 is committed to supporting one another and standing by each and every worker who has been blindsided by Insight’s careless decision,” the statement continues. “The union will continue to fight for answers for all members and hold Insight Health Systems accountable to not cause further unnecessary confusion for these workers, who have already endured months of tumultuous changes.” 

Earlier Thursday, Deb Bindas, regional director of AFSCME Council 8, which represents many of the nurses and employees at the hospitals, said Insight promised a plan will be shared with the employees by the end of the week and contracts would be followed. 

Bindas said the union knew the Hillside hospital would be closing, but a spokesperson for the Ohio Nurses Association reported that Hillside was operating Thursday.

As of Thursday morning, AFSCME believed the Warren hospital’s emergency room would remain open. 

It is estimated that about 400 employees have been affected by the “temporary” closures or cutbacks at Insight Trumbull and Hillside, as well as satellite offices of Hillside.

“We’re in the business of saving lives, but we failed to save the lives and livelihoods of our employees,” Bindas said, adding that many of the employees have been with the hospital system for 40 years and are still hanging on through another tumultuous time.

In the latest hurdle for Insight Health System, which acquired the Trumbull County hospitals from bankrupt Steward Health Care Systems in October 2024, a company is seeking to reclaim equipment from the hospitals due to lack of payment, according to a motion filed late Wednesday.

Post Road Equipment Finance SPV LLC filed the motion in U.S. Bankruptcy Court, seeking emergency enforcement of an agreement with Insight regarding the lease of the equipment.

According to court documents, the lease pertains to surgical equipment, medical imaging equipment, hospital beds, ventilators and medical robotics equipment.

Insight, which has been slowly cutting back on services over the past two weeks, said in an earlier statement that the emergency room at the Warren hospital remains open, along with some lab and radiology services. An Insight spokesperson didn’t respond to The Business Journal’s requests for comment Thursday.

In the motion filed Wednesday, Post Road Equipment claims it had reached an agreement with Insight in early February for the company to make payments to purchase the equipment, which was initially leased to Steward prior to its bankruptcy.

The first payment was due Feb. 28, and Insight missed the payment and has not responded to attempts by Post Road to resolve the situation throughout March, the motion claims.

Bindas said she doesn’t blame the current situation entirely on Insight, although she would like to see company officials communicating better.

“Steward Health is like the bad penny that keeps on turning up,” Bindas said. “Steward Health should be held accountable for all of this.”

Steward and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services filed a request in U.S. Bankruptcy Court on Thursday morning for a 30-day extension to file a report on the terminating costs for the Trumbull hospitals. The original report was due 150 days after Steward closed the deal with Insight on Oct. 30, 2024. The deadline would be March 31, but an extension through April 30 is being sought.

The Ohio Nurses Association, which also represents some of the nurses at the Trumbull County hospitals, declined to comment further on the situation at this time.

According to an Insight statement, patients seeking medical records should call 810 895 4039 or email insightmedicalrecords@iinn.com.

The Trumbull County Department of Job and Family Services has posted an announcement on its Facebook page for a rapid response event April 4 at Kent State University at Trumbull auditorium to help Insight employees. Those with last names starting with A-K should attend the session at 9 a.m., and those with last names starting with L-Z should attend at 11 a.m. A makeup session is scheduled for 1 p.m.

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