Chairman Cassidy, Ranking Member Sanders Holds Former Steward CEO Accountable for Hurting Louisiana Families’

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, and Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Ranking Member of the HELP Committee, requested information from Attorney General Todd Blanche on the status of the contempt referral for Dr. Ralph de la Torre, former Chairman and CEO of Steward Health Care, which was unanimously approved by the Senate on September 25, 2024.

Steward previously operated 31 hospitals in Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Texas. On May 6, 2024, Steward Health Care declared bankruptcy, representing the largest for-profit hospital bankruptcy in United States history.

Steward's mismanagement resulted in limited resources at Glenwood Regional Medical Center in West Monroe, LA, forcing the hospital to operate at one-third its capacity. One patient died waiting for a transfer to another hospital because Glenwood did not have necessary resources to treat.

"The bankruptcy represented a culmination of financial mismanagement and self-interested incentives by Dr. de la Torre and corporate executives in health care, private equity, and real estate. The resulting harm included termination of health care workers, patient deaths, and multiple hospital closures resulting in lack of access to care," wrote the senators.

In response to the bankruptcy, the HELP Committee initiated an investigation into Steward's financial mismanagement and invited Dr. de la Torre to appear at a hearing on September 12, 2024. Dr. de la Torre declined the invitation. The Committee then voted to authorize a subpoena requiring de la Torre to appear on September 12, 2025. Dr. de la Torre failed to appear. In response, the Committee voted 20-0 on a criminal contempt resolution. This was the first time in modern American history that the HELP Committee issued a criminal contempt resolution.

"We needed answers from Dr. de la Torre, as did the health care workers forced to treat patients in dangerous conditions, loved ones of patients who died, and communities who saw their local hospitals close or face severe financial distress. Dr. de la Torre's wealth should not make him immune to requests from Congress, especially as communities continue to grapple with the consequences of Dr. de la Torre's greed," continued the senators.

Following the Committee action, the Senate then unanimously adopted the Committee's criminal contempt resolution, which certified the HELP Committee Report regarding Dr. de la Torre's failure to appear to the US Attorney for the District of Columbia to present to a grand jury.

"Unfortunately, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia has not yet acted on this important effort to hold Dr. De la Torre criminally accountable for his actions. We request an update on the status of this case and the actions taken by the U.S. Attorney by August 20, 2026," concluded the senators.

Read the full letter here or below:

Dear Acting Attorney General Blanche:

We write to inquire about the status of the contempt referral for Dr. Ralph de la Torre, former Chairman and CEO of Steward Health Care ("Steward").

Steward previously operated 31 hospitals in Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Texas. On May 6, 2024, Steward Health Care declared bankruptcy. The bankruptcy represented a culmination of financial mismanagement and selfinterested incentives by Dr. de la Torre and corporate executives in health care, private equity, and real estate. The resulting harm included termination of health care workers, patient deaths, and multiple hospital closures resulting in lack of access to care.

Following the Steward bankruptcy, the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (HELP Committee) initiated an investigation into Steward's financial mismanagement. As part of this investigation, the HELP Committee issued an invitation to Dr. de la Torre to appear before the committee. Dr. de la Torre declined the invitation. On July 25, 2024, the Committee voted to authorize a subpoena, ad testificandum, requiring Dr. de la Torre to appear on September 12, 2024.

On September 12, 2024, the Committee held a hearing, "Examining the Bankruptcy of Steward Health Care: How Management Decisions Have Impacted Patient Care." Again, Dr. de la Torre declined to appear in violation of the subpoena. However, health care workers and public officials from Louisiana and Massachusetts appeared and testified to how Steward's total financial mismanagement resulted in nurses buying bereavement boxes for the remains of babies who died when the hospitals couldn't afford to provide them. Their testimony also described how patients were receiving substandard care resulting in numerous deaths.

In response to Dr. de la Torre's failure to appear, on September 19, 2024, the Committee voted 20-0 on a criminal contempt resolution. Subsequently, the Senate unanimously adopted the resolution, which certified the HELP Committee Report regarding Dr. de la Torre's failure to appear to the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia for presentation to a grand jury.

The Committee launched an investigation into how this bankruptcy hurt patients, workers, and communities and how corporate greed exacerbated these issues. We needed answers from Dr. de la Torre, as did the health care workers forced to treat patients in dangerous conditions, loved ones of patients who died, and communities who saw their local hospitals close or face severe financial distress. Dr. de la Torre's wealth should not make him immune to requests from Congress, especially as communities continue to grapple with the consequences of Dr. de la Torre's greed.

Unfortunately, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia has not yet acted on this important effort to hold Dr. De la Torre criminally accountable for his actions. We request an update on the status of this case and the actions taken by the U.S. Attorney by August 20, 2026.

Sincerely,

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