Hudson County Superior Court Assignment Judge Jeffrey Jablonski denied Hudson Regional Hospital’s request for an injunction yesterday in their breach of contract case with CarePoint Health.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
The motion, part of a lawsuit HRH filed at the end of last month, sough to prevent CarePoint from selling, transferring, or alienating assets from Christ Hospital in Jersey City, Hoboken University Medical Center, and the Bayonne Medical Center.
The lawsuit claims CarePoint breached their merger pact with HRH to form Hudson Healthy System, which was announced in January. Jablonski denied the motion, citing a lack of “clear and convincing evidence.”
“Plaintiffs have failed to demonstrate by clear and convincing evidence that they have a reasonable probability of success on the merits; plaintiffs have failed to demonstrate by clear and convincing evidence that the balancing of the equities and hardships counsels in favor of injunctive relief,” Jablonski wrote in denying the order to show cause.
“Plaintiffs have failed to demonstrate by clear and convincing evidence that they will suffer irreparable harm absent injunctive relief; and plaintiffs have failed to demonstrate by clear and convincing evidence that the public interest will not be harmed by the granting of injunctive relief.”
Expectedly, CarePoint applauded the decision in a statement.
“Yesterday’s ruling is a victory for community members in Hudson County who depend on CarePoint Health hospitals to receive the medical care they need. Continuing the lawsuit at this point would be a pointless exercise and doing so would prove that HRH is only interested in forcing CarePoint to expend precious resources that should instead be directed to caring for patients in need,” they wrote.
“CarePoint Health’s top priority will always be providing compassionate, patient-centered care to the communities we serve in Hudson County, and we will continue working to build partnerships that support this mission now and well into the future.”
HRH spokesman Ron Simoncini said they remain confident this litigation will benefit all Hudson County residents in the long run.
“We are confident that we will emerge from this process with a strong health are solution that serves all of Hudson County. We are not going to comment on ongoing legal proceedings beyond our filings.”
No concrete reason has been given why the partnership never came to fruition after five months or so, but CarePoint’s financial shortcomings have been well documented.
The state appointed a financial monitor to their three hospitals around the time the Hudson Health System concept was announced, with CarePoint officials sending a letter to Gov. Phil Murphy in April seeking $129 million in American Rescue Plan funds, as HCV first reported.
