By Moneth G. Deposa
Variety News Staff

A HEALTHCARE firm in the U.S. whose top officers include investor Sedy Demesa has filed for bankruptcy in court as part of a process to reorganize its financial structure and contractual obligations.
This, according to the company, is in line with its commitment to care for its patients and protect the jobs of its employees.
Pleasant Care, which has about 5,000 employees and more than 20 skilled nursing facilities throughout California, last week filed for Chapter 11 protection, which will allow the corporation to stay in business while under court supervision.
The company may “emerge” from bankruptcy within a few months, depending on the size and complexity of its situation.
Demesa is executive vice president of the company and president of Emmanuel Education Services Inc. which plans to open a licensed vocational nursing college here.
In a statement, Demesa said they want to “save jobs and retain assets while the engine of profitability — which is the business — is maintained rather than being dismantled.”
She said she will continue to pursue her investment plans in the CNMI which, she added, are independent of Pleasant Care and will not be affected by anything that concerns the California-based company.
“I will continue pursuing my investment plans, including the establishment of Emmanuel College, in the Northern Marianas. Graduates of Emmanuel College’s nursing program will still be offered employment in the U.S., through our partnerships with various healthcare companies in California and Nevada, including Pleasant Care,” she said.
Demesa said she is confident that Pleasant Care will be able to sail through the issues it is facing now, “in the same manner that other big corporations such as US Airways, United Airlines, Delta Airlines, Northwest Airlines, and VENCOR, which is now known as Kindred Healthcare, emerged from their respective reorganization programs.”