FILE image of Mission Hospital in Asheville, North Carolina. (Photo credit: WLOS staff)
ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) —A lawsuit against HCA Healthcare over emergency and cancer care at Mission Health will proceed after recent court rulings, Attorney General Jeff Jackson’s Office said in a July 28 news release
Jackson’s office said North Carolina Business Court Judge Julianna Earp ruled in favor of several of the attorney general’s arguments and denied most of HCA’s motion for summary judgment
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“HCA threw every argument against the wall to try to get this case thrown out, but they didn’t stick,” AG Jackson said in a written statement. “I’m grateful the judge saw through them. We’re going to trial, and I will keep fighting to defend emergency and cancer care in western North Carolina.”
The lawsuit, initially filed in 2023 by then-Attorney General Josh Stein, accuses HCA Healthcare of failing to provide the emergency and cancer care it committed to when the for-profit company purchased Mission Health System in 2019
Jackson’s office said Judge Earp rejected HCA’s request to avoid trial and agreed that the 2019 purchase agreement “requires HCA to take all steps necessary to actually provide” emergency and cancer services at Mission Hospital
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Since HCA Healthcare purchased Mission Health System in 2019, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has placed Mission Hospital in “immediate jeopardy” multiple times, most recently in January 2026
In March 2026, Mission Health CEO and President Greg Lowe announced that CMS had removed the latest “immediate jeopardy” status following a survey and approval of the hospital’s Enhanced Plan of Correction
A new statement from Mission Health reads: “We are confident in our compliance with the terms of the APA. As always, our foremost focus is providing high-quality care to the Western North Carolina communities we are proud to serve, and we remain committed to meeting the healthcare needs of our region.”
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Judge rejects HCA Healthcare’s motion to avoid trial, Attorney General Jackson says
