Friday, October 2, 2026 | St. Lawrence County, NY
BY JIMMY LAWTONNorth Country This WeekOGDENSBURG — North Star Health Alliance is asking a federal bankruptcy judge to authorize a team of consultants and legal advisers in a bid to stabilize its North Country healthcare facilities, however the team comes with conflicts as many are also creditors named in the filings.
The team appears to have been in place already, but North Star is requesting retroactive approval of the contracts.
Court filings submitted Wednesday show the NSHA is seeking to formalize the hiring of four separate firms to manage its Chapter 11 reorganization.
The requests come as the system, which includes Carthage Area Hospital and Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center, struggles to remain solvent while navigating ongoing litigation with labor unions and medical vendors.
Wintergreen and Bloom
At the center of the restructuring is Robert Bloom, a principal at financial advisory and healthcare consulting firm Wintergreen, Inc., serving as the hospitals’ Chief Restructuring Officer (CRO). He also serves as Chief Financial Officer at Carthage Area Hospital.
Bloom is tasked with steering the system toward its "Transformation Plan," but his appointment doesn’t come without concerns.
Several former employees who have contacted North Country This Week have raised questions about what Wintergreen’s role with the hospital had been prior to the bankruptcy. Exactly what services they have provided to North Star Alliance or how much money they've received has not been publicly shared.
“Wintergreen professionals have previously provided financial and restructuring advisory services to over 300 community hospitals and clinics in over 40 states. The Debtors believe that Wintergreen is well qualified to provide its services to them in a cost-effective, efficient and timely manner,” the document says.
Wintergreen is itself a creditor, meaning the hospital system already owes money to the firm now leading its recovery. Bloom’s Wintergreen team is authorized to bill at hourly rates ranging from $450 for senior professionals to $250–$400 for support staff. Notably Jonathan Pantenburg, another principal at Wintergreen is listed in the document for providing services at the $450 per hour rate.
The request to the court would also authorize Bloom and the others listed to be paid retroactively.
Documents show that in January an agreement with Wintergreen was signed by then CEO Richard Duvall and Bloom to provide services.
The agreement includes an estimated $240,000 monthly fee billed at the start of each month, adjusted against actual hours and expenses.
It also calls for reimbursement for reasonable out-of-pocket costs like travel, lodging, meals, and documented legal fees (no entertainment/alcohol).
It notes that $325,000 previously paid under earlier agreements is carried forward and applied first to pre-bankruptcy services and any estimated future fees. Any excess is held as security and refunded at the end of the engagement.
Conflict counsel
The Alliance has also retained Verrill Dana LLP as "Special Conflicts Counsel." The firm will step in only if the hospitals’ lead bankruptcy attorneys, Barclay Damon LLP, face a conflict of interest.
Notably, Verrill Dana previously represented Wintergreen in drafting the engagement letter that placed Bloom in the CRO role. Because of this prior relationship, the firm cannot represent the hospitals in any matter adverse to Wintergreen without consent, which Verrill Dana called "unlikely."
Lead partners Roger A. Clement, Jr., and Robert Keach are billing at discounted rates of $684 and $990 per hour, respectively, while partners Lindsay Milne and Michael Fee are billed at $720 and $1,026 per hour. A $75,000 upfront retainer for Verrill Dana was paid not from hospital funds, but by the Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center Foundation.
Counsel with conflict?
The Alliance is also seeking to retain Bousquet Holstein PLLC, which has served as the hospitals’ corporate counsel for more than 15 years. The hospitals currently owe the firm $101,111 for unpaid pre-petition work.
The outstanding payment does raise concerns for a potential conflict of interest.
Despite the concern, Bousquet Holstein argues its "institutional knowledge" is essential for managing ongoing litigation, including a hospital designation dispute with federal regulators, active proceedings with NLRB 1199 SEIU healthcare workers’ union, and threatened lawsuits from vendors like Xerox Financial Services and medical staffing firms.
Rates range from $440 to $530 per hour, with associates billed at $320–$330 per hour.
Administrative support
To manage communications with thousands of creditors, the system has hired Omni Agent Solutions. Unlike the law firms, Omni’s fees are primarily based on the volume of claims processed and notices mailed, although it maintains hourly rates for administrative support. Omni will ensure that every vendor, employee, and patient owed money is properly notified of their rights.
Chief Bankruptcy Judge Wendy A. Kinsella is expected to review the applications in the coming weeks. If approved, the firms’ employment would be backdated to Feb. 10, covering work already performed during the first month of the bankruptcy.
Additional conflicts
“A disclosure of relationships listed in the court documents also notes the following.
Rob Bloom’s wife, Kristen Bloom, is a mental health therapist employed by Carthage Area Hospital, Inc. This employment is not a significant source of family income and Ms. Bloom intends to leave that position within the next six months.
Benjamin Rubacha is the Chief Information Officer of the North Star Health Alliance, Inc. system, and also provides limited IT services to other entities, either individually or through an IT consulting firm he owns. Mr. Rubacha has been a part-time (approximately 3-5 hours per week) employee of Wintergreen where has helped manage Wintergreen’s own IT issues.
Wintergreen intends to terminate Mr. Rubacha’s services as an employee and, to the extent needed, retain his consulting services as an independent contractor. Versa Badge is a vendor and creditor of North Star Health Alliance, Inc., providing software relating to physician time studies. Versa Badge and Wintergreen have referred work to each other, without compensation.
Quorum Health Resources d/b/a Ovation Health (“Ovation”) is a vendor and creditor of North Star Health Alliance, Inc., providing services relating to revenue cycle management. Ovation and Wintergreen have referred work to each other, without compensation.”
