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Troubled Jersey City hospital to close Saturday, drawing outcry from nurses, city leaders
By
Michael Sol Warren
Published Feb 26, 2026
Modified Feb 26, 2026
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Kena Betancur via Getty Images
By
Michael Sol Warren
Published Feb 26, 2026
Modified Feb 26, 2026
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The operator of Heights University Hospital in Jersey City has decided to close the troubled facility for good this weekend, prompting outcry from local officials that the move will leave residents without access to emergency care.
The union that represents nurses at the hospital said it had been informed by Hudson Regional Health that the hospital would close by 7:30 p.m. on Saturday.
The hospital, formerly known as Christ Hospital, has served Jersey City since 1872. It has long faced financial struggles, and Hudson Regional Health has said repeatedly since acquiring the hospital last year that keeping it open was financially untenable. The operator largely shuttered the hospital in November; only the emergency room has remained open since.
Hudson Regional Health spokesperson Vijay Chaudhuri said the hospital’s financial losses threatened the overall financial health of the system, jeopardizing operations at its other facilities in Secaucus, Bayonne and Hoboken.
“Since taking over Heights University Hospital, HRH and its Chairman Yan Moshe have invested over $100 million in an attempt to aggressively stabilize its operations including the rebuilding of service lines, enacting of labor agreements, recruitment of physicians, and more,” Chaudhuri said. “Despite these historic investments, last year Heights University Hospital suffered a severe loss of $74 million, and a projected loss of the Emergency Department of $30 million this year.”
Chaudhuri said the losses were due to federal funding cuts under the Trump administration, state cuts to charity care funding and rising rates of uninsured patients.
The nurses union — Health Professionals & Allied Employees, or HPAE — urged the state to investigate Hudson Regional Health for the sudden closure and its actions since taking over the hospital.
“This employer has repeatedly violated laws and any penalty has failed to dissuade them from taking further illegal action. It seems that their business ventures come first even if it may put patients' lives at risk,” HPAE President Debbie White said. “Our union members and the patients they care for need Governor Sherrill to intervene immediately and take action to stop the closure.”
Hudson Regional Health did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The company had plans to redevelop the property for residential use but that spurred the city council to unanimously pass a zoning ordinance in December blocking such projects at the site. The hospital’s owners sued the city over that ordinance earlier this year, according to Jersey Digs.
Jersey City Mayor James Solomon said the city is in talks with state officials and is exploring its options to stop the closure.
"Earlier today, Hudson Regional Hospital informed the administration that it intended to close the Emergency Department at Christ Hospital,” Solomon said. “This is unacceptable, especially since just a year ago, their CEO said that the future is bright for patients in the Heights. I will use all my power to reverse this decision.”
Chaudhuri said the state Department of Health was notified of the closure plan Wednesday night. He also left open the possibility that the decision may be reversed.
“This morning, Mayor Solomon and Jersey City elected officials requested that HRH make every effort to keep the Heights Emergency Department open for the immediate future, understanding the financial impact to the system,” Chaudhuri said. “HRH is currently evaluating the feasibility of this request with the NJDOH and all stakeholders.”
The state health department and Gov. Mikie Sherrill’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Jersey City Councilmembers Joel Brooks, Thomas Zuppa and Jake Ephros joined the calls for a state probe and said in a joint statement that the move will have ripple effects across the region.
“This decision will hit hardest in the neighborhoods and households that already face the greatest barriers to care: low-income families, seniors, people with disabilities, residents with chronic conditions, and immigrants and mixed-status families who may already be reluctant to seek care until a situation becomes dire,” the councilmembers said. “It will also strain first responders and neighboring hospitals across Hudson County as patient volume and transport times rise.”
This is a developing story and has been updated with additional information.
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Health and Science
Michael Sol Warren
Michael Sol Warren covers New Jersey for WNYC and Gothamist, and previously reported on issues around the Garden State for NJ Spotlight News and NJ Advance Media. He can be reached at [email protected].
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