LRGH

Concord Hospital won’t have any competition in its effort to acquire bankrupt LGRHealthcare, but it will have to overcome some 25 objections to the sale filed last week by various creditors.

Rather than watch as a nearby health system financially collapsed, Concord Hospital officials felt compelled to act.

“Folks have thought (about this) very mission-like,” Robert Steigmeyer, the CEO of Concord Hospital, said during a roundtable discussion Tuesday. “That we can’t stand by and let a system fail next door to us.”

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LRGHealthcare, which operates Lakes Region General Hospital and Franklin Regional Hospital, is filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, citing a huge debt load and other financial strains compounded by the coronavirus pandemic.

Gov, Chris Sununu said New Hampshire is prepared to handle the expected surge in coronavirus cases, but that some local hospitals will need help from the state to remain open.

At a press conference Friday afternoon, Sununu said the state now has more than 5,200 beds ready to handle COVID-19 patients and others needing care when the coronavirus peaks here. That includes nearly 1,700 new beds the state has set up at 14 temporary sites across the state.

Lakes Region General Healthcare has been accused of violating consumer protection laws by hiring a Chief Nursing Officer who didn’t have a New Hampshire nursing license.

By the end of this year, New Hampshire families will have lost two places to turn to give birth, continuing a years-long trend of maternity unit closures in the Granite State and across the country.