Skip to main content

%1

Nassau County Hospital Seeks Another Round of Turnaround Advice

Submitted by jhartgen@abi.org on

A Long Island hospital that treats some of the area’s most vulnerable residents is seeking another round of turnaround advice after an earlier recommendation to shut its inpatient unit and sell its nursing facility, Bloomberg News reported. Nassau Health Care Corp. this month issued a request for advisers to help boost revenues and performance at the 530-bed Nassau University Medical Center and its 589-bed skilled nursing facility. Like other so-called safety net hospitals, most of Nassau Medical’s patients are on publicly funded insurance — about 80% according to a December report issued by Alvarez & Marsal, the advisers previously hired. Medicare and Medicaid typically reimburse at a lower rate than private insurance, and A&M projected that the hospital would lose close to $200 million this year. Because it’s operated by the county, filing for bankruptcy isn’t an option without authorization from the governor or legislature. With a shift to outpatient care and 2,300 vacant beds in the county, the hospital “fails to address the changing needs of the community,” the A&M report said. “The status quo is simply not an option,” and without changes “the survival of NHCC remains doubtful.” Nassau County Health Care Corp. has $150 million municipal bonds outstanding. The bonds are guaranteed by the county and carry an A+ rating from S&P Global Ratings Inc., according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Limetree Bay Refinery Approved to Begin Drawing Bankruptcy Loan

Submitted by jhartgen@abi.org on

An idled oil refinery in the U.S. Virgin Islands received a bankruptcy judge’s approval to begin drawing an emergency loan as it embarks on its second trip through bankruptcy in the last six years, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. Limetree Bay Refining LLC on St. Croix can tap the first $5.5 million of a $25 million bankruptcy loan to cover payroll for 271 employees and fund payments to vendors, Judge David Jones said at hearing yesterday in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Houston. The bankruptcy loan is being supplied by Arena Investors LP, an outside lender that wasn’t involved with Limetree Bay before it mothballed operations last month and filed for bankruptcy on Monday. The refinery, as well as a nearby oil terminal and storage facility, are both controlled by private-equity firm EIG Global Energy Partners. The refinery had been in operation only a few months after sitting dormant for nearly a decade. Federal authorities ordered it shut in May over pollution releases, including a flaring incident that rained down droplets on nearby homes, sickening residents and damaging property. Last month, the company decided to mothball the refinery, citing financial constraints.

San Jose Hotel Bankruptcy Lawsuit Pits Downtown Hotel Owner Against Manager

Submitted by jhartgen@abi.org on

The owner and the operator of a bankrupt downtown San Jose, Calif., hotel are now locked in widening and increasingly bitter legal hostilities after the filing of a lawsuit tied to the bankruptcy proceeding, the San Jose Mercury News reported. The conflict between the owner of the Fairmont San Jose hotel has morphed into a full-scale battle after the launch of the litigation, which was filed as a sibling proceeding arising from the ongoing chapter 11 case involving the landmark lodging. SC SJ Holdings, the affiliate led by business executive Sam Hirbod that owns the Fairmont San Jose, filed a lawsuit on June 29 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court against Accor Management U.S., a large company that manages and operates hotels. The lawsuit is asking the court to find that the operator Accor Management has illegally interfered with the owner’s efforts to stabilize and protect the hotel, which has been closed since March 5, 2021, the day that the hotel filed for bankruptcy. The legal battle makes it clear that the hotel’s owner and the facility’s operator have become full-fledged adversaries at a time when the lodging stays closed and its reopening remains in limbo. The lawsuit also disclosed that the hotel’s finances and operations were already wobbly even ahead of the outbreak of the coronavirus that triggered business shutdowns to combat the deadly bug.

Trucking, Logistics Firms Owed Thousands After Freight Forwarder Files Chapter 7

Submitted by jhartgen@abi.org on

More than 150 trucking, logistics and towing companies are collectively owed hundreds of thousands of dollars after a New Jersey freight forwarder specializing in shipping automobiles, boats and motorcycles worldwide abruptly ceased operations and filed chapter 7, Freight Waves reported. Advectus Transportation Services of Linden, New Jersey, filed its petition in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey on June 30. In its filing, Advectus lists its assets as up to $50,000 and its liabilities as between $500,000 and $1 million. The company states it has 158 creditors and maintains that no funds will be available for unsecured creditors once it pays administrative fees. Advectus owes Bank of America of Fort Worth, Texas, more than $322,000, including $83,535 in funds it received from the lender through the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program in May 2020. It also owes Chase Credit of Wilmington, Delaware, $47,000 and TD Bank in Lewiston, Maine, over $27,685. Advectus’ remaining 150 unsecured creditors consist of mostly small trucking companies, logistics firms and towing and wrecker services that are owed nearly $279,000.

Christian Health Nonprofit Sharity Seeks Bankruptcy After State Probes

Submitted by jhartgen@abi.org on

Sharity Ministries Inc., a medical-cost-sharing nonprofit for Christians, has filed for bankruptcy protection in an effort to keep operating amid accusations by state authorities that it deceived consumers by running a sham health-insurance business, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. The nonprofit said that it would use bankruptcy to break many of its contracts with Aliera Cos., which provides administrative, marketing, sales and other services to Sharity, according to papers filed Thursday in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Del. Aliera is also under investigation by state authorities for allegedly evading insurance regulations. Sharity operates a healthcare sharing ministry that covers certain medical expenses submitted by its roughly 10,000 members from voluntary contributions made by other members, according to court papers. In October, New York state accused Aliera and Sharity of running a sham insurance business in a manner designed to evade regulation. Although Aliera and Sharity say they aren’t health insurers and don’t guarantee the payment of claims, they advertise in New York as healthcare alternatives, state officials said. A hearing on the New York matter is scheduled for this fall. Sharity has said that it pays a medical expense if it deems the request eligible and if there are enough member contributions to cover that expense. Regulators in California, New Jersey, Texas and Georgia are also investigating Sharity, according to court papers.

Aeromexico Says Mexican Shareholders Eye Controlling Stake in Capital Raise

Submitted by jhartgen@abi.org on

Aeromexico said on Friday a group of Mexican shareholders and business people had informed the airline they aimed to participate in a major capital raising as part of the company's chapter 11 restructuring process in the United States, Reuters reported. Aeromexico in a statement said it was unaware that any agreement had been reached so far, but would provide details as and when one was in place. It also noted it expected the investment to be "substantial, controlling and long-term." Delta Airlines, which owned a noncontrolling 51% stake in Aeromexico as of Dec. 31, declined to comment. Delta took a $770 million charge on its investment last year after the carrier's chapter 11 bankruptcy filing. Aeromexico did not provide details on the identity of the shareholders and business people.

Limetree Bay’s Oil Refinery Is Said to Prepare Bankruptcy Filing

Submitted by jhartgen@abi.org on

Limetree Bay Energy is preparing for a bankruptcy filing by its oil refinery in the U.S. Virgin Islands after environmental contamination caused the company to indefinitely extend a shutdown of the plant, Bloomberg News reported. The refinery on St. Croix has been seeking so-called debtor-in-possession financing that will help fund a restructuring in bankruptcy court. Limetree Bay has been in talks with creditors to address its debt after the shutdown of the 200,000-barrel-a-day refinery left it unable to raise additional financing. Operational mishaps in May contaminated drinking water, sent oil droplets raining down on residents of the island and produced heavy odors. In the same month, the refinery missed a tank usage payment to Limetree Bay’s terminals in St. Croix. That’s now squeezing the finances of the terminal business, and S&P Global Ratings slashed its credit grades on Limetree Bay Terminals — an entity affiliated with the refinery that has a $446 million term loan — by five levels last month to CCC-. Limetree’s financial challenges date from at least 2009 and its environmental woes to at least 2005, when it was accused by environmental regulators of contaminating drinking water and damaging wildlife and the marine environment. The refinery planned to close for good in 2012 when it was owned by Hess and PDVSA, the Venezuelan state oil company. It filed for bankruptcy in 2015 and was sold to private owners.

Judge Sets July Hearing on Boy Scouts Child Sex Abuse Settlement Agreement

Submitted by jhartgen@abi.org on

A bankruptcy judge has set a July 29 hearing on the proposed $850 million settlement agreement the Irving, Texas-based Boy Scouts of America has with attorneys representing some 60,000 victims of child sex abuse, giving insurance companies and others who oppose it more time to weigh in, the Associated Press reported. The agreement was reached last week by attorneys for the Boy Scouts, abuse victims, local Boy Scouts councils and lawyers appointed to represent victims who might file future claims. The Boy Scouts had wanted the hearing to take place on July 20 in front of Judge Laurie Selber Silverstein, but at a status hearing she pushed the settlement hearing back to later in the month. Attorneys who represent insurance companies, thousands of other abuse victims and local scout sponsoring organizations such as churches said that they needed more time to gather information about the agreement and file objections. The Boy Scouts of America sought bankruptcy protection in February 2020, moving to halt hundreds of lawsuits by men who were molested as youngsters decades ago by scoutmasters or other leaders. The filing was intended to try to reach a global resolution of abuse claims and create a compensation fund for victims. But attorneys for the organization have been unable to reach agreement with all the parties involved in the case to allow the 111-year-old organization to continue operating.

Liquidators Become Shopkeepers to Peddle Pandemic’s Unsold Goods

Submitted by jhartgen@abi.org on

The COVID-19 crisis, which prompted a wave of retail bankruptcies and nationwide shutdowns, swallowed a whole season’s worth of unsold goods, Bloomberg News reported. That has opened the door for Hilco and Gordon to run sales -- not for the retailers that usually hire them, but under their own nameplates. Shopper’s Find, as the stores are called, are sourcing directly from manufacturers or wholesalers stuck with piles of last season’s fashion and other extra goods. “As more and more stores are closing, there are fewer outlets for inventory,” said Ian Fredericks, the head of Hilco Global’s retail group. When Hilco and Gordon Brothers run their mainstay liquidations, they step in to manage and oversee stores’ operations. That involves not just tasks like displaying merchandise and running the cash register, but adding inventory from vendors to round out what’s available -- bringing in socks, for example, if you are selling shoes, Fredericks said in an interview. Those contacts have proved useful for both sides now that manufacturers need to offload mountains of stuff and the liquidators have found no shortage of cheap rents for spaces to run a new type of cut-rate sale.

More States Agree to Settlement Plan for Opioid-Maker Purdue

Submitted by jhartgen@abi.org on

More than a dozen states have dropped their longstanding objections to OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma’s reorganization plan, edging the company closer to resolving its bankruptcy case and transforming itself into a new entity that helps combat the U.S. opioid epidemic through its own profits, the Associated Press reported. The agreement from multiple state attorneys general, including those who had most aggressively opposed Purdue’s original settlement proposal, was disclosed late Wednesday night in a filing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in White Plains, N.Y. It followed weeks of intense mediations that resulted in changes to Purdue’s original exit plan. The new settlement terms call for Purdue to make tens of millions of internal documents public, a step several attorneys general, including those for Massachusetts and New York, had demanded as a way to hold the company accountable. Attorneys general for both states were among the 15 who agreed to the new plan, joining about half the states that had previously approved it. Nine states and the District of Columbia did not sign on. Purdue sought bankruptcy protection in 2019 as a way to settle about 3,000 lawsuits it faced from state and local governments and other entities. They claimed the company’s continued marketing of its powerful prescription painkiller contributed to a crisis that has been linked to nearly 500,000 deaths in the U.S. over the last two decades.