Prospect Medical Holdings, the owner of Delaware County’s Crozer Health, filed for bankruptcy protection Saturday night. The move by the Los Angeles company was long expected, as it struggled to sell its money-losing East Coast hospitals in Pennsylvania,

A Los Angeles-based company that owns more than a dozen hospitals in four states filed for bankruptcy late Saturday night, the second major system acquired by private equity to collapse in less than a year.

Crozer Health parent company Prospect Medical Holdings has announced that it is filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. In a statement on Sunday morning to employees obtained by the Daily Times, Von Crockett, the co-chief executive officer for California-based Prospect Medical Holdings said this:

Crozer Health, the hospital system in Delaware County, is expected to continue operating as Prospect looks to sell the asset and restructure.

The bankruptcy filing comes as the prospect of a state takeover of the struggling Delaware County health system looms.

The state will be monitoring the situation closely and intends to participate in court proceedings to the extent necessary to protect the interests of patients, employees