By PAULA TRACY, InDepthNH.org
WHITEFIELD – The Attorney General’s Office is getting involved with outsourcing decisions at North Country Health Care, officials confirmed Wednesday.
The nonprofit operates hospitals in Lancaster, Berlin and Colebrook and announced late last week it would be outsourcing certain positions, impacting the jobs of at least 30 in the North Country.
Michael Garrity, director of communications and external affairs for the Department of Justice, was provided InDepthNH.org’s request for answers to seven questions related to the decision, including who approved the selection of the new firm to take over certain administrative roles and the extent of involvement of the Weeks Hospital Board of Directors in approving the company.
Garrity said “the New Hampshire Department of Justice is aware of recent outsourcing decisions at North Country Healthcare. At this time the NH DOJ Charitable Trusts Unit is actively engaging with involved parties and is closely reviewing the matter within the scope of our oversight authority.”
He did provide InDepthNH.org’s request for the most recent federal tax Form 990 for 2023, which is here. https://indepthnh.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/North-Country-FY-9-30-24-Form-990-Redacted-2.pdf
Some Coos County folks took to social media earlier this week concerned that the functions will be outsourced to H2 Hartzler Healthcare, based in Colorado Springs, Colorado, which is owned by Matt Hartzler, North Country Healthcare’s interim vice president of revenue cycle.
Elected leaders have sounded the alarm they have been hearing from employees and patients and state Sen. David Rochefort, R-Littleton, said he plans a meeting Oct. 1 with Attorney General John Formella to discuss his many concerns.
Rochefort said Monday that about 30 employees are expected to be terminated and replaced by the new out-of-state company, H2, as questions swirl about that decision and its ownership and the potential for more changes.
The following questions were posed by a North Country reader asking InDepthNH.org to investigate, but Garrity and Executive Councilor Joe Kenney, R-Wakefield, didn’t directly responded to them Wednesday. James A. Patry, vice president for marketing and community relations for North Country Healthcare, didn’t respond to a late afternoon email and phone message, but this story will be updated when he does.
The questions included: Who approved the selection of H2; What’s its proven track record; What role did the Weeks Hospital Board of Directors have in approving this company; What are the current 2025 annual salaries of the CFO and other administration officials including the VP of Revenue; What were the selection criteria; What other companies were considered; and Why is the patient trust of this hospital administration so poor.
On Monday, InDepthNH.org posted a preliminary story on this matter here https://indepthnh.org/2025/09/08/north-country-healthcare-patients-workers-scared-by-outsourcing-possible-layoffs/