New Hampshire’s attorney general is demanding answers from Exeter Hospital about its plans to cut services.
The Portsmouth Herald reported Monday that Core Physicians, an affiliate of Exeter Hospital, has informed patients it will stop offering neurology, podiatry and pediatric dentistry as of Oct. 11. The hospital also plans to close its occupational health program in the coming weeks. And last week, Exeter Hospital said it plans to end a paramedic intercept service that many area towns rely on to fill gaps in their emergency services, angering local officials.
In a statement Monday, New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella said his office is “carefully reviewing” whether the planned cuts violate the terms of Exeter Hospital’s merger with Beth Israel Lahey Health last year.
Formella’s office approved that deal on certain conditions, including promises by the Massachusetts-based health system to expand services and make investments totaling $375 million.
Formella also accused Exeter Hospital and Beth Israel Lahey of not being fully transparent. The hospital “has provided incomplete and fragmented information regarding what appear to be planned healthcare service cuts,” making it hard to determine whether it remains in compliance with the terms of the merger, Formella said.
In his statement, Formella noted Exeter Hospital initially gave towns only 10 days’ warning that the paramedic service would close – despite contracts that required at least 90 days’ notice. The hospital subsequently agreed to continue the program until Dec. 20, after Formella’s office stepped in.
The hospital “has also downplayed the demand for the healthcare services and programs it intends to cease providing,” Formella said.
Formella gave the hospital until Friday to provide his office with more details.
A spokesperson for Exeter Hospital did not respond to questions about Formella’s assertions Tuesday, but reiterated a previous statement that said the hospital is dealing with “dramatically rising costs, changing patient care trends and a challenging reimbursement environment.”
“While we have made progress in continuing to rebuild our financial health in the post-pandemic environment, we are evaluating all aspects of our operations, including aligning our staff with patient care priorities and focusing our resources on health care programs and services that Exeter Hospital is uniquely qualified to provide,” the spokesperson, Sonya Vartabedian, said.
Executive Councilor Janet Stevens, who represents Exeter and surrounding towns, said she urged Formella’s office to intervene after hearing from worried constituents – first fire chiefs concerned about the paramedic program’s closure, then patients at risk of losing access to neurology and other care.
“It is a public health crisis,” she said.
Stevens said she’s heard from patients who are being referred to neurology providers out of state, or are trying to switch to providers whose first available appointments are in early 2025.
She said the cuts go against what Beth Israel Lahey promised when it took over the hospital.
“This is supposed to be a community-based hospital, and they’re diverting patients elsewhere,” Stevens said. “It’s got to stop.”
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