4 N.J. hospitals renamed as part of new countywide health system

Bayonne Mayor Jimmy Davis said he can finally sleep again after years spent worrying about the fate of his city’s only acute care hospital.

“For five years, the hospital behind us has consumed my life. And I mean it when I say that it consumed my life because this is a hospital that was going to close,” Davis said at a press conference on Monday in front of Bayonne Medical Center.

“That’s why today’s a relief,” said Davis.

Bayonne Medical Center is one of four hospitals that debuted a new name and identity this week as part of its integration into a new Hudson County health network.

The medical institutions are Bayonne University Hospital (formerly Bayonne Medical Center), Hoboken University Hospital (formerly Hoboken University Medical Center), The Heights University in Jersey City (formerly Christ Hospital), and Secaucus University Hospital (formerly Hudson Regional Hospital).

Together, they make up a new, four-hospital system called Hudson Regional Health. The rebranded teaching hospitals will also undergo between $75 and $100 million in upgrades to services, technology, and infrastructure.

“This is not just a name change or cosmetic change. This shows our commitment to what’s coming next for the population of Hudson County,” CEO Dr. Nizar Kifaieh told NJ Advance Media on Monday.

The newly established academic hospital chain also plans to expand its reach throughout the county with a mobile health clinic that can provide everything from check ups to vaccines. Patients will be able to access health services regardless of their immigration status, insurance, or other barriers to medical care, said Kifaieh.

“At the end of the day, we take ownership and responsibility for the health of the population of Hudson County. Why? Because we’re the largest healthcare provider. By default, a lot of these patients — whether they’re uninsured, underinsured, undocumented, charity care, whatever it may be — they’re going to come to us regardless,” said Kifaieh.

A majority of the funding for capital improvements is being personally bankrolled by Yan Moshe, a real estate developer and owner of surgical centers who purchased the struggling Meadowlands Hospital Medical Center for $12.2 million in 2017 and changed the name to Hudson Regional Hospital. He spent millions transforming the hospital.

“I’m grateful that Yan and the new operators are not only saving these hospitals from closure, they’re investing much needed capital to make these facilities the world-class facilities that patients in Hudson County deserve,” said State Sen. Raj Mukherji, D-Hudson. “This renaming is not just a change of signage and logos, it’s the delivery of new symbols of hope.”

The launch of Hudson Regional Health brings renewed promise to a county that was in dire straits when it came to health care options.

“If you think about every story that you’ve read, they’ve largely been negative about Hudson County health care over the last decade,” said Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop during Monday’s press conference.

“The Secaucus facility was as problematic as any of them prior to Yan Moshe getting involved. And I’m encouraged by what’s happening today because of the fact that he has a track record of turning these facilities around,” said Fulop.

The hospitals in Bayonne, Jersey City and Hoboken were previously owned by CarePoint Health, a Hudson County nonprofit health care system plagued by financial problems.

CarePoint filed for bankruptcy in November 2024 after amassing a debt of $300 million, a financial calamity that threatened to close half of Hudson County’s six hospitals.

The hospitals were saved when a federal bankruptcy court judge confirmed CarePoint’s plan to exit bankruptcy in April and handed over control of its three hospitals to Hudson Regional.