TO:

The Baystate Health Community

FROM:

Mark A. Keroack, MD, MPH
President and CEO, Baystate Health

DATE:

November 6, 2019

RE:

Behavioral Health - Update

Baystate Health and US HealthVest have mutually agreed not to move forward with their proposed joint
venture to operate an inpatient behavioral health hospital in Western Massachusetts.
Baystate remains committed to its plans to expand the availability of, and to consolidate, inpatient
behavioral health services for patients in its service area, and we intend to move forward with these
plans. We will continue to focus on providing an enhanced patient care environment in a state-of-theart facility, increased access for adults, expanded access to specialized care for children and adolescents,
and integrated and coordinated care. As we move forward, we recognize that we cannot do so alone,
and we will work to identify a new partner in this effort.
We are in discussions with the City of Holyoke regarding our continued interest in the development of
the property on Lower Westfield Road.
While we plan for the future, the operation of the current inpatient behavioral health units will continue
as usual. We are committed to ensuring, for our staff and for our patients and their families, that these
units continue to operate smoothly and efficiently, and we will continue to deliver the same level of
high-quality care that our community deserves and expects from us. Ambulatory behavioral health
programs and services (outpatient and partial hospitalization) will continue to remain in local
communities.
We will provide updates when we have additional information to share.