LOS ANGELES COUNTY : Board Delays Decision on Clinics, Hospital Closures
The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors on Thursday delayed voting on whether to close High Desert Hospital and 14 county clinics until county health officials map out the potential impact on patients.
The Department of Health Services, which faces a deficit of about $650 million, wants the board to authorize it to close the health centers by July 1 as part of a proposed $100 million in budget cuts.
But the board, led by Supervisor Gloria Molina, criticized the health department for proposing to close the hospital and health centers without preparing a report that would address the fallout from the cuts.
“I want to know what happens to the patients,” Molina said.
The board directed the health department to provide a contingency report on June 15, which will include estimates of waiting times at county health facilities in the event of closures; its impact on local community hospitals, and residents’ geographic access to health care facilities after closures.
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