Senators unanimously passed a resolution to hold Ralph de la Torre, the CEO of troubled hospital operator Steward Health Care, in criminal contempt of Congress on Wednesday.
De la Torre failed to appear at a hearing where he was subpoenaed to testify on Capitol Hill earlier this month, and the Senate resolution refers the matter to the Department of Justice for prosecution. It marks the first time first time since 1971 that the Senate has held someone in criminal contempt.
"Dr. de la Torre is not above the law," Sen. Bernie Sanders, an Independent from Vermont, said on the Senate floor ahead of the vote. "If you defy a congressional subpoena you will be held accountable no matter who you are or how connected you may be."
"Over the past decade, Steward, led by its founder and CEO Dr. Ralph de la Torre and his corporate enablers looted hospitals across the country for their own profit. And while they got rich, workers, patients and communities suffered," said Sen. Ed Markey, a Democrat from Massachusetts.
Before declaring bankruptcy earlier this year, Steward owned more than 30 hospitals across eight states. CBS News previously found the company failed to pay for life-saving supplies at its facilities after de la Torre and private equity investors he partnered with extracted hundreds of millions of dollars out of the company.
Last month, the Dallas-based company closed two Massachusetts hospitals, leaving about 1,200 workers jobless, according to the state.
While Steward's hospitals struggled, CBS News found evidence of lavish spending by de la Torre, including the purchase of a $40 million yacht in 2021, a $7 million Texas horse ranch in 2022, and two corporate jets that senators have valued at $95 million.
The contempt resolution comes after senators spent months trying to get de la Torre to publicly answer questions about his management of the company. De la Torre had been subpoenaed to testify on Sept. 12 in front of a Senate committee investigating the bankruptcy, but did not show up.
An attorney for de la Torre previously asked the senators to postpone his client's testimony until after Steward's bankruptcy proceedings are resolved. Last week, as the committee was weighing contempt resolutions, de la Torre sought to invoke his Fifth Amendment right to not testify.
In a letter, de la Torre's attorney wrote that lawmakers "sought to frame Dr. de la Torre as a criminal scapegoat for the systemic failures in Massachusetts' health care system."
In addition to being presented with the criminal contempt referral against de la Torre, the Department of Justice has opened a separate criminal probe into Steward. A federal grand jury in Boston is examining the compensation, spending and travel of the company's top executives, including de la Torre, a person familiar with the matter told CBS News.
Through a spokesperson, de la Torre has denied wrongdoing.
"Dr. de la Torre did everything in his power to help Steward Health Care overcome numerous industry headwinds and challenges, including personally purchasing necessary equipment and supplies in order to address the needs of patients and personally guaranteeing loans for the company with his assets," the spokesperson said in a statement.
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