The hospital in San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy, where the saint known as Padre Pio lived for most of his life, has debts estimated to run between about $290 million to $350 million.
Pope Leo XIV on Wednesday created a commission to identify solutions for long-term sustainability at the Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza, a major hospital complex founded by St. Pio of Pietrelcina and directly overseen by the Vatican Secretariat of State.
The Catholic hospital — which is located in the southern Italian region of Puglia — is facing a debt crisis from which “we will emerge together,” Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin said during a May 5 visit to the facility.
The hospital in San Giovanni Rotondo, where the saint known as Padre Pio lived for most of his life, has debts estimated to run between 250 million to 300 million euros (about $290 million to $350 million).
The hospital is currently in a dispute with officials from the Puglia region over reimbursements — the regional authority claims it is owed 32 million euros ($37 million) — and is also involved in a conflict over new labor contracts.
The new commission now aims to resolve what is a
