Moody’s cuts Oklahoma hospital authority rating to Caa3
Norman Regional Health System
Moody’s Ratings ended a review of Oklahoma’s Norman Regional Hospital Authority (NRHA) in the wake of a debt service payment default by downgrading its revenue bond rating a notch to Caa3, confirming a Caa2 issuer rating, and revising the outlook to stable from negative.
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The action announced on Friday followed the closing earlier this month of
Moody’s, which placed NRHA’s junk ratings under review for potential downgrades on Sept. 11, said the Caa2 issuer rating “reflects benefits from the recent financing that provides short-term liquidity and early indications of positive cashflow.”
“The downgrade of the revenue bonds to Caa3 is solely due to their legal subordination to the new Series 2026 debt, which has first priority on pledged gross revenues and collateral and senior rights to payment and recoveries if there were to be another default,” the rating agency added.
Bondholders of the Series 2026 tax-exempt bonds, which mature on Sept. 1, 2031, and carry a 7.5% interest rate, were provided liens and security interest in the authority’s real and personal property with the new bonds taking priority over the previous three outstanding issues.
The health system did not immediately provide a comment on Moody’s rating action.
S&P Global Ratings
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The trustee set an Oct. 16
The health system, which provides services at multiple campuses in south central Oklahoma, had $247.45 million of outstanding bonds from the three previous issues as of June 30, 2025, according to its
