St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children receives more than $50 million to continue operations

St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children, Philadelphia, has received more than $50 million is financial support from health care and higher education organizations to keep it afloat. 

The hospital which was bought by Tower Health and Drexel University in 2019 to keep it from bankruptcy, will receive financial support from the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Thomas Jefferson University and Einstein Healthcare Network (now part of Jefferson Health), Temple Health, and Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine—and private donors over the next two years, Tower Health said. 

The money will provide short-term financial stability as St. Christopher’s works to solidify other funding. The hospital provides services to an underserved community facing obstacles to accessing quality healthcare, Tower Health said. 

 An anonymous donor has provided $1.5 million to establish a professional fundraising team for the hospital, which will be supported by the Drexel Institutional Advancement team. Additional efforts to grow private philanthropic support for St. Christopher’s are also well underway.  

“I am tremendously grateful to our local healthcare organizations and universities for coming together in support of St. Christopher’s Hospital,” said John Fry, president of Drexel University. “Their commitment will help to secure the future of this great hospital that is a unique civic treasure, an invaluable asset for medical education, and above all, a mission-driven institution that delivers outstanding pediatric care to families in North Philadelphia and across the region.” 

Sue Perrotty, president and CEO of Tower Health said she is also grateful for the support, saying, “St. Christopher’s is irreplaceable not only to the patients and community it serves, but also as part of Philadelphia’s role as a center of medical education and research, with more than 130 residents and fellows, 360 visiting residents from other schools, and over 500 other students in allied health fields.” 

St. Christopher’s President and CEO Don Mueller said the hospital has been working to fix its financial issues over the past two-and-a-half years. 

“While we have made significant financial improvement, we have more work to do. This funding will provide the support we need as we work to create a sustainable long-term future for St. Christopher’s,” he said. “We’ll be able to focus on further enhancing our current programs and developing new ones, to better address the substantial needs of our patients and their families.” 

 Mueller said that St. Christopher’s future will be based on a combination of four “pillars:” effective management of resources; funding support from federal, state and city governments; philanthropy; and fair reimbursement for the cost of providing services to patients insured by Medicaid.  

Medicaid reimburses hospitals less than the cost of care. With 82% of its patients covered by Medicaid, St. Christopher’s has the highest Medicaid percentage of any pediatric academic medical center in the United States.  

“St. Christopher’s cannot survive just on Medicaid,” said Mueller. “This new approach for the hospital— combining the support of leading healthcare organizations and government along with philanthropy—is our best chance to ensure that children and families who need great care will continue to get it.”