SHARON, Pa. – Four insurance companies have filed limited objections to the sale of Sharon Regional Medical Center to Tenor Health Foundation, claiming they are still owed money from Steward Health Care System.

The claims were filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Houston, where Judge Christopher Lopez has been overseeing Steward’s restructuring case.

The largest of the insurance claims was filed Friday by Elevance Health Companies, which is affiliated with Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, Unicare Life & Health Insurance and others. Elevance claims it is owed at least $2.6 million for services and overpayments.

Additional claims were filed Friday by Humana Health Care and United Health Care, claiming at least $36,975 and $93,402, respectively.

Aetna, which filed claims Monday, says it is owed a minimum of $100,504.

The filings claim the exact amount is still being determined due to the nature of hospital billing and overpayments. After overpayments are made, the insurance companies have months to seek recovery from hospitals.

Each filing notes the proposed cure amount of $0 in the sale document is not acceptable considering how much they are owed.

Tenor Health paid $1.9 million for the hospital in January, which had been closed as part of Steward’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Tenor reopened the hospital in March.

Other Local Hospitals

In Ohio, Insight Health Systems acquired from Steward the former Trumbull Regional Medical Center in Warren and Hillside Rehabilitation Hospital in Howland. Both hospitals stopped rendering services last week. 

Tom Connelly, president of AFSCME Ohio Council 8, said as of Monday evening, employees still had not received their latest paychecks, which should have been received Friday.

Advantage Staffing Services LLC, a company that has been providing professional health care staffing at some facilities as Steward’s bankruptcy progresses, filed a claim in bankruptcy court Monday. The company claims Steward owed more than $7.4 million before it even filed the bankruptcy petition. Through an agreement, some payments were made in return for the company’s continuing to provide services.

Advantage Staffing claims Steward still owes it money, including $1.29 million for a stipulated administrative claim through the court.

The staffing company also claims it has been providing staffing services for some of the new hospital operators, including at the Insight hospital in Warren. The filing claims Insight owes Advantage Staffing $113,894 for services rendered after Sept. 11, 2024.

Pictured at top: Sharon Regional Medical Center in Sharon, Pa.