After continued delays in responding to Steward Health's offer to purchase cash-strapped Jackson Health System, the former decided it had enough of the slow-moving Miami-Dade County Commission, and declared the deal stalled.
The county, which opted to take over negotiations from the Public Health Trust, according to NBC Miami, failed to respond to not one, but two letters sent in February in which Boston-based Steward offered to buy Jackson for $1.1 billion. Steward, in turn, simply grew tired of waiting, reports the Miami Herald.
Another factor in the proceedings may have been Steward's insistence on tax support to operate the hospital. According to the Herald, Robert Cuevas--the county's attorney--last week declared that Jackson would need to be "owned, operated, maintained or governed" by the county or the Public Health Trust to have access to any tax dollars.
A third, and perhaps even larger factor in the stalled deal, according to county commissioner Carlos Gimenez, was Cuevas's statement that should the Jackson property not be used for a county hospital, the land deed required it to go back to the city of Miami.
"[W]ith this opinion, they seem to be very limited," he told the Herald.
Steward spokesman Bruce Rubin said in a statement that his organization would consider re-engaging in talks with Jackson "should the process and timeline be conducive" to Steward, notes the Herald.
To learn more:
- here's the Miami Herald piece
- check out the NBC Miami story