Massachusetts Commission Demands End to Pappas Hospital's Quiet Closure

BOSTON -- June 17, 2026, Massachusetts commission hears sweeping testimony that Pappas Rehabilitation Hospital for Children is being quietly closed despite official denials. The Joint Special Legislative Commission on Pappas, co-chaired by State Senator William Driscoll and Representative Marjorie Decker, convened June 17 in Boston for a full day of testimony revealing that only two long-term patients were admitted to the 130-acre Canton campus between January 2025 and March 2026, against 18 discharges, dropping the census from 35 to 21. AFSCME's Jim Durkin called for an immediate straw poll and proposed temporary modular structures at an estimated $8 million to $9 million to restore admissions. DPH Commissioner Robert Goldstein committed to releasing patient-declination data to the commission and returning the admissions policy to the admissions committee for rapid review, while MNA President Katie Murphy warned that "time is running out" and that clinical staff overruled on discharges will not return once lost. The patient census is projected to fall to 14 by July, and the commission is seeking a one-year extension of its December 2026 reporting deadline through the fiscal year 2027 budget conference committee.