Stuart Joins US Rep. Nikki Budzinski’s Call for Gateway Regional Medical Center Transparency

EDWARDSVILLE, Ill.— State Rep. Katie Stuart, D-Edwardsville, is joining U.S. Representative Nikki Budzinski’s demands for transparency regardingGateway Regional Medical Center’s delayed payments to over 600 employees and subpar patient care.

“Medical professionals are the backbone of our community, keeping us safe and supporting us in life’s hardest moments. Healthcare workers—from nurses to receptionists to janitors— deserve respect, transparency and their paycheck for the physical and mental labor they do day in and day out.

“Several issues have come to our attention at Gateway Regional Medical Center and American Healthcare Systems, a Los Angeles-based company who owns the facilities. Staff and patients are alleging the facility has delayed employee payment, is experiencing staffing issues in a medical hub, and patients are receiving unacceptable levels of care, which is particularly affecting critically ill patients. This is absolutely unacceptable on every level. Our healthcare professionals should go to work knowing they will be equitably compensated, and patients need to know that they’re going to receive the help they need at this facility. 

“This news reinforces an alarming pattern of healthcare becoming scarcer, less accessible, or prohibitively costly for downstate families like ours. With the federal administration persistently cutting back on local, affordable care, the closure of Gateway would mark a critical turning point that deprives even more families of a crucial medical hub. 

“I call on American Healthcare Systems to provide full transparency to the hundreds of healthcare professionals and patients impacted, and to clearly outline the actions being taken so that patients continue to receive the vital care they deserve.”