More than 800 layoffs loom as Steward closes Penn. hospital

About 850 employees will be laid off when Steward Health Care closes Sharon Regional Medical Center in Pennsylvania early next year.

Layoffs will be effective Jan. 6 and include 149 professional staff members and 699 line staff members, according to Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification documents filed this week.

Related: Steward Health Care files for bankruptcy

Bankrupt health system Steward announced Sharon Regional's closing after a proposed deal to acquire the facility fell through with Meadville Medical Center. Meadville said in a Monday news release it was unable to secure the necessary funding to financially stabilize Sharon Regional.

"The team at MMC invested a substantial amount of time and resources in this effort, and we are incredibly disappointed in the outcome. MMC has remained consistent as to the amount of funding it would take to stabilize SRMC for the long term. However, without adequate funding, proceeding any further would be irresponsible," the release said.

Steward did not respond to a request for comment.

Dallas-based Steward filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in May and has since sought to sell off its 31 hospitals and related facilities across eight states.

Several months later, Steward has worked out deals for most of its assets. Steward was approved in September to sell six Massachusetts hospitals to Boston Medical Center, Lifespan Health System and Lawrence General Hospital for a combined $343 million. HonorHealth took over operations at four Arizona hospitals that month, as well.

In October, Steward sold three Florida hospitals to Orlando Health and received court approval to sell seven hospitals in Florida and Texas to American Healthcare Systems. That same month, Steward finalized a $245 million deal to sell physician group Stewardship Health to private equity-owned Rural Healthcare Group.