State Approves Hospital Sale

The New Jersey Department of Health on Friday afternoon approved the calling the transfer "beneficial to the population in its service area, since it will preserve access to health care services for the community."

Commissioner Mary O'Dowd's approval marks an important step in thel, which was

Mayor Dawn Zimmer announced in a press release on Friday afternoon that the closing of the deal—which, according to the contract, keeps the hospital an acute care facility for at least seven years—will take place "within the next few days."

Although critics have called the seven year period too short, O'Dowd called it "sufficient" in her letter.

Another reason mentioned in the letter is the current "precarious" financial situation of the hospital. after PSE&G threatened to turn off service after HUMC had not been paying its bills.

The 18-page letter stipulates that Holdco turns in an annual audit, done by an outside agency, for the first seven years of its ownership of the hospital.