DOJ, Illinois AG asked to investigate hospital
[August 27, 2026]
By Jim Talamonti | The Center Square
(The Center Square) – Two Illinois legislators are asking federal and
state authorities to investigate a Metro East hospital over the
potential misuse of taxpayer funds.
State Rep. Amy Elik, R-Alton, and state Sen. Erica Harriss, R-Glen
Carbon, wrote letters to U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche and Illinois
Attorney General Kwame Raoul, asking them to look into Gateway Regional
Medical Center in Granite City.
Elik told The Center Square that the hospital asked employees in early
August to delay cashing their paychecks.
“I'm an accountant. I know that that is a serious red flag if a business
or organization is not going to be able to potentially pay their
employees when they are due,” Elik said.
The letter from Elik and Harriss said Gateway received millions of
dollars from Illinois taxpayers but now owes the state more than $40
million in unpaid taxes, penalties and payments.
The letter said the hospital also reportedly owes more than $2.6 million
in property taxes and hundreds of thousands of dollars for water service
and energy costs.
Harriss said there are questions about where the state money has gone,
and she and Elik would like answers for people who are concerned about
their jobs and and access to health care.
“We know that this hospital, we would like to see it stay open. We know
that it serves a valuable purpose in the community, not only as an
employer, but as a health care provider,” Harriss told The Center Square
on Wednesday.
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Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul speaks to reporters inside the
Illinois State Capitol in Springfield. Photo: Greg Bishop / The
Center Square
Elik and Harriss said in their letter that sworn statements from
former hospital executives alleged that millions of dollars were
funneled from Gateway to purchase hospitals in California, but
Gateway’s parent company, American Healthcare Systems, disputed the
allegations.
Elik said state payments to help the Gateway’s financial situation
should have been used at the hospital it was loaned for.
“I don't think it's out of bounds for us to ask those questions,
where did the money go?” Elik said.
When asked what she hoped the letters to Blanche and Raoul would
accomplish, Elik said she would like to know about the hospital’s
plan to get back on solid footing.
“That’s fair for us to expect them to be transparent, for them to be
accountable for the state taxpayer dollars that they're using, and
to be transparent and accountable to their employees and staff,”
Elik said.
Gateway Regional Medical Center did not immediately respond to The
Center Square’s request for comment.
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