Jersey City officials, healthcare workers, and residents have been fighting endlessly to save Heights University Hospital and to uphold the integrity of the city’s accessible healthcare. On August 27, the State Health Planning Board (SHPB), under the New Jersey Department of Health (NJDOH), gathered outside of Heights University Hospital for a public hearing.
Back in 2024, CarePoint Health, which formerly operated Christ Hospital, as well as Bayonne University Hospital (previously Bayonne Medical Center), Secaucus University Hospital (previously Hudson Regional Hospital), and Hoboken University Hospital (previously Hoboken University Medical Center), filed for bankruptcy. Hudson Regional Health’s (HRH) hospital network acquired Christ Hospital, along with the three others. The name change was part of a newly implemented rebranding by the Secaucus-based company, which committed to an immense turnaround, modern improvements, and promises to provide care to both underinsured patients and those with no insurance. At the ribbon cutting in September 2025, Dr. Nizar Kifaieh, Hudson Regional Health’s CEO, shared, “This signifies [the] future for this organization to not just be a high-quality health care organization, but also an academic organization that teaches the future generation of doctors who will provide care in Hudson County and beyond.”
Months later, and $300 million made in investments, HRH announced that they are losing more than $60 million annually. It was also announced that they cannot continue operating without government assistance and that non-essential workers will be cut. Residents in the area were terrified, as the hospital was threatening to be closed overnight; thousands rely on Heights University Hospital for a wide range of health-related assistance. Residents, workers, and staff gathered and created the petition named “Save Heights University Hospital.” It was then sent on October 12 to New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy and New Jersey’s Department of Health.
The SHPB finally moved forward after a long-awaited public hearing on August 27, 2026, following the submission of the petition. In the time between these two events, political tension began to build. HRH had filed a temporary restraining order to stop the SHPB from holding the hearing, which was originally planned for April. A judge vacated the TRO, and city officials continued to gather statements from workers and residents.
Assemblywoman Katie Brennan spoke at the meeting emphasizing multiple very important points: protecting healthcare access for residents of Jersey City, holding NRH accountable for alleged lawless actions, and making sure something like this never happens again. After Brennan took the stand, other lawmakers such as Senator Raj Mukherji stressed that Jersey City cannot support its growing population with only one operating hospital. He called the closing of Heights University Hospital “a public health failure in slow motion. Residents and workers are feeling the effects, sharing that emergency rooms are extremely overcrowded, ambulance transport times are longer, and the overall fear of the Heights being left with little to no acute-care access.
There still is no clear plan for the future of Heights University Hospital. The NJBOH has been called on for immediate action. This is not just a fight for keeping a hospital open; it is a fight for preserving the right to healthcare for all of Jersey City.
