City Government

Hospital Closures, Cuts in Services Loom for Some Communities. How the State May Step in to Help.

Five months after declaring a fiscal emergency and predicting that they’d run out of funds by early this year, officials at San Benito County’s only hospital said they have secured enough cash to get through the summer. At least for now, residents there won’t lose their local hospital.

Published

3 years ago

May 9, 2023

Oakland Post

Legislative proposals on the table include a bill that would offer emergency loans for hospitals facing closure or those trying to reopen. A second bill involves Medi-Cal, the health insurance program for low-income people. It proposes funneling more money to hospitals by boosting Medi-Cal payments to providers by reinstating a tax on health insurance plans.

By Ana B. Ibarra
CalMatters

But a short-term infusion of cash only buys Hazel Hawkins Memorial Hospital a little time. The end goal, hospital administrators say, is to find a buyer that will take over and not only keep the hospital solvent but, ideally, expand services in the area.

Hazel Hawkins, in Hollister, is one of a handful of hospitals statewide facing financial troubles. While some of these hospitals have encountered financial difficulties in the past, the closure of Madera Community Hospital, which shut down completely at the start of this year and filed for bankruptcy in March, has prompted a new cry for help. Now a group of legislators are brainstorming ways to support struggling hospitals and keep them from shutting down or cutting services.

In California, six rural hospitals are at heightened risk of closing, according to the Center for Healthcare Quality and Payment Reform. The center does not release the names of at-risk hospitals because a hospital’s situation can change quicker than data may reflect, said Harold Miller, the center’s president. The California Hospital Association said a few hospitals in metro areas are also struggling, but the organization has not publicly named every hospital it deems at risk, noting that when a hospital announces its perilous financial situation it can prematurely begin to lose workers and patients.

Among hospitals that have publicly talked about their troubles or attributed reductions in services and staff to their finances: Hazel Hawkins and Mad River Community Hospital in Arcata have both suspended their home health services programs; Kaweah Health Medical Center in Visalia has laid off at least 130 employees; El Centro Regional Medical Center in Imperial County cut its maternity ward, forcing local families to travel about 25 minutes to the only other hospital in the county.

Most recently, in mid-March, Beverly Hospital, a 202-bed hospital in Montebello, said that in June it will suspend its maternity, pediatric and outpatient radiology services. In a January letter to the state attorney general, the hospital noted its “dire financial circumstances” and said it would be canceling its plans to affiliate with the health care system Adventist Health because “Beverly Hospital does not have the resources to remain operational during the pendency of the attorney general review.” Under state law, the attorney general must approve the sale of nonprofit hospitals.

The California Hospital Association is asking for $1.5 billion from the state for struggling hospitals, and its request is being supported by a bipartisan group of lawmakers. But even supporters acknowledge this is a challenging request when the state is projecting a budget deficit.

Health economists interviewed by CalMatters said state help should be targeted so that any financial aid goes to hospitals in actual need.

“Most of the hospitals in California are in big systems and those systems have financial resources to get their members through. But there are a few that genuinely appear to be at risk if this cost surge continues,” said Glenn Melnick, a health economist at the University of Southern California. “The question is: Does the government want to have a facility that could get them (hospitals) through this rough patch? What you don’t want is to hand out a billion and half dollars to hospitals that may not need it.”

Providing aid to hospitals in trouble is warranted and different from helping other types of businesses because the goal is to protect patients, said Chris Whaley, a health economist with RAND Corp., a think tank.

“When businesses go out of business, even if it is no fault of their own, we accept that as part of capitalism, but in health care, if a hospital goes out of business that usually means a vulnerable patient population has lost access to care,” he said.

Saving Hollister’s hospital

Hospitals have largely blamed the pandemic for their financial troubles. They’re still recovering from increased expenses related to labor, drugs, and medical supplies needed to respond to COVID-19. Struggling hospitals that have spoken about their circumstances have a couple of common threads: They are independent, meaning they don’t have the financial backing of a well-endowed health system, and at least a third of their patients are low-income and insured through Medi-Cal.

Some hospitals face additional pressures. For example, despite its increased expenses, Hazel Hawkins, a 25-bed hospital, posted earnings of $2.6 million in the fiscal year that ended in June of 2022, according to state financial documents. Then in July it learned that it was being overpaid by Medicare, the federal insurance program for seniors and people with disabilities, said Mary Casillas, Hazel Hawkins’ interim CEO. The hospital is now on the hook to repay more than $5 million to Medicare. That’s on top of a 20% decrease in its adjusted Medicare reimbursement, she said. By December, employees had received notices of a potential closure.

Earlier this year, the hospital secured a $3 million state loan, received an advancement in property tax dollars it receives from the county and has been working to reduce its operational costs. That, among other efforts, will help the hospital stay afloat at least until September and give it time to find a buyer, Casillas said. She said her hospital has been approached by at least 10 interested parties that are currently reviewing Hazel Hawkins’ situation.

“We have bankruptcy professionals, as well as financial advisors, who have been very helpful at helping us manage our cash flow,” Casillas said.

Legislators’ proposals

Assemblymember Esmeralda Soria, a Fresno Democrat whose district includes Madera and who is authoring legislation, said keeping hospitals open is not optional — people should have emergency care close to home.

“I think this issue is really important as the state continues to pursue expansion of coverage. This is a reminder that folks in my area may qualify for Medi-Cal, but what does that mean if they can’t access care?” Soria said.

Soria is authoring Assembly Bill 412, the legislation that would create an emergency loan program specifically for hospitals that are facing closure or that have closed but have a plan to reopen. Currently, state loans are only available to operating public hospitals, but Soria wants to create an option that would aid the reopening of Madera Community Hospital. In the case of a closed facility, the loan would be made to a government entity looking to reopen its local hospital.

The legislation would require a budget allocation of $20 million, which would be added to funds already available through the state treasurer’s office. These additional loans would likely be a very small part of the puzzle. In Madera, county officials have estimated that it would cost about $55 million to reopen the hospital.

Long term, legislators are eyeing more ambitious ideas. For example, Soria said an ideal scenario would be for the University of California system to take over the defunct Madera hospital. The UC could run a medical residency program there, which would help attract more providers to the San Joaquin Valley.

“We’ve approached UC Merced,” Soria said, noting that those conversations are very new. “Is it a possibility to dream big and have the UC take it over? I think there are opportunities like this, and we have to think outside the box.”

Meanwhile, Sen. Anna Caballero, a Merced Democrat, has introduced Senate Bill 870, which calls for the state to renew a tax on managed care organizations that expired last year, and use some of those funds to increase payments to hospitals and other providers. Higher payment could provide some relief to hospitals that serve a large low-income patient population, Caballero said.

Medi-Cal rates, providers argue, have not kept up with growing costs. The California Hospital Association estimates the state pays hospitals 74 cents for every dollar spent on a Medi-Cal patient. Experts point out that hospitals also receive “supplemental payments,” which include payments to hospitals that serve a disproportionate share of Medi-Cal patients and compensation for care provided to uninsured people. In 2021, California hospitals altogether received about $9.2 billion in these supplemental payments, according to the Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program Payment and Access Commission.

In an email, the hospital association said supplemental payments do not make up for the shortfalls in base pay. “The structural funding problem is the result of base payment rates that haven’t increased in over a decade, despite massive inflationary growth,” said David Simon, a spokesperson for the association.

Gov. Gavin Newsom also called for the reinstatement of the tax on managed care organizations in his January budget draft. His proposal points more toward sustainability and offsetting any potential cuts in Medi-Cal, rather than expanding service levels and provider payments. Typically, revenue from that tax allows the state to save general fund spending on Medi-Cal. If reinstated, revenue from this tax could save the state’s general fund up to $2 billion a year, according to the Legislative Analyst’s Office.

Caballero said that providing aid to hospitals should come with some scrutiny. Part of what legislators are working on in these proposals is the criteria hospitals will have to meet in order to be eligible for state resources, she said. One idea is to send a team of experts that analyzes each hospital’s situation, and if part of the problem is mismanagement, then there would have to be changes in the hospital’s leadership as a condition to receive help, she said.

The Republican Senate caucus, led by Sen. Brian Jones, a San Diego Republican, is taking a different approach and pegging its legislation, Senate Bill 774, to the state attorney general’s authority over hospital transactions. By state law, the attorney general has to review and approve mergers that include a nonprofit hospital as a way to examine a buyer’s market power and ensure protections for patients.

Trinity Health, a nonprofit Catholic health care system, was set to purchase Madera Community Hospital but pulled out of the deal, blaming conditions imposed by Attorney General Rob Bonta. Jones’ bill seeks to prohibit the attorney general from requiring certain conditions, like restricting the buyer from negotiating new contracts and rates with payers.

Assembly Bill 869, by Assemblymember Jim Wood, a Democrat from Healdsburg, would benefit small and rural hospitals by providing relief in a different way. This bill would provide grants for seismic retrofitting to financially distressed hospitals and allow them more time to meet the state’s 2030 seismic standards. The requirements, which have been delayed in the past, have been a point of contention. State law requires that hospitals upgrade their buildings so that they are functional after an earthquake, but hospital leaders say they can’t afford the expensive upgrades, especially in their current financial situation.

“The bill is a targeted approach to preserve a small number of hospitals that are most often a community’s only access to emergency care,” Wood said during a recent Assembly Health Committee hearing, “and will certainly close if some relief is not provided.”

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Discrimination in City Contracts

The report was made public by Councilmember Carroll Fife, who brought it this week to the Council’s Life Enrichment Committee, which she chairs. Councilmembers, angry at the conditions revealed, unanimously approved the informational report, which is scheduled to go to an upcoming council meeting for discussion and action. The current study covers five years, 2016-2021, roughly overlapping the two tenures of Libby Schaaf, who served as mayor from January 2015 to January 2023.

Published

2 days ago

February 13, 2026

Oakland Post

Dr. Eleanor Ramsey (top, left) founder, and CEO of Mason Tillman Associates, which conducted the study revealing contract disparities, was invited by District 3 Councilmember Carroll Fife (top center) to a Council committee meeting attended by Oakland entrepreneur Cathy Adams (top right) and (bottom row, left to right) Brenda Harbin-Forte, Carol Wyatt, and councilmembers Charlene Wang and Ken Houston. Courtesy photos.

Disparity Study Exposes Oakland’s Lack of Race and Equity Inclusion

Part 1

By Ken Epstein

A long-awaited disparity study funded by the City of Oakland shows dramatic evidence that city government is practicing a deeply embedded pattern of systemic discrimination in the spending of public money on outside contracts that excludes minority- and woman-owned businesses, especially African Americans.

Instead, a majority of public money goes to a disproportionate handful of white male-owned companies that are based outside of Oakland, according to the 369-page report produced for the city by Mason Tillman Associates, an Oakland-based firm that performs statistical, legal and economic analyses of contracting and hiring.

The current study covers five years, 2016-2021, roughly overlapping the two tenures of Libby Schaaf, who served as mayor from January 2015 to January 2023.

The amount of dollars at stake in these contracts was significant in the four areas that were studied, a total of $486.7 million including $214.6 million on construction, $28.6 million on architecture, and engineering, $78.9 million on professional services, and $164.6 million on goods and services.

While the city’s policies are good, “the practices are not consistent with policy,” said Dr. Eleanor Ramsey, founder and CEO of Mason Tillman Associates.

There have been four disparity studies during the last 20 years, all showing a pattern of discrimination against women and minorities, especially African Americans, she said. “You have good procurement policy but poor enforcement.”

“Most minority- and women-owned businesses did not receive their fair share of city-funded contracts,” she continued. “Over 50% of the city’s prime contract dollars were awarded to white-owned male businesses that controlled most subcontracting awards. And nearly 65% of the city’s prime contracts were awarded to non-Oakland businesses.”

As a result, she said, “there is a direct loss of revenue to Oakland businesses and to business tax in the city… There is also an indirect loss of sales and property taxes (and) increased commercial office vacancies and empty retail space.”

Much of the discrimination occurs in the methods used by individual city departments when issuing outside contracts. Many departments have found “creative” ways to circumvent policies, including issuing “emergency” contracts for emergencies that do not exist and providing waivers to requirements to contract with women- and minority-owned businesses, Ramsey said.

Many of the smaller contracts – 59% of total contracts issued – never go to the City Council for approval.

Some people argue that the contracts go to a few big companies because small businesses either do not exist or cannot do the work. But the reality is that a majority of city contracts are small, under $100,000, and there are many Black-, woman- and minority-owned companies available in Oakland, said Ramsey.

“Until we address the disparities that we are seeing, not just in this report but with our own eyes, we will be consistently challenged to create safety, to create equity, and to create the city that we all deserve,” said Fife.

A special issue highlighted in the disparity report was the way city departments handled spending of federal money issued in grants through a state agency, Caltrans. Under federal guidelines, 17.06%. of the dollars should go to Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBEs).

“The fact is that only 2.16% of all the dollars awarded on contracts (went to) DBEs,” Ramsey said.

Speaking at the committee meeting, City Councilmember Ken Houston said, “It’s not fair, it’s not right. If we had implemented (city policies) 24 years ago, we wouldn’t be sitting here (now) waiving (policies).”

“What about us? We want vacations. We want to have savings for our children. We’re dying out here,” he said.

Councilmember Charlene Wang said that she noticed when reading the report that “two types of business owners that are consistently experiencing the most appalling discrimination” are African Americans and minority females.

“It’s gotten worse” over the past 20 years, she said. “It’s notable that businesses have survived despite the fact that they have not been able to do business with their own city.”

Also speaking at the meeting, Brenda Harbin-Forte, a retired Alameda County Superior Court judge, and chair of the Legal Redress Committee for the Oakland NAACP, said, “I am so glad this disparity study finally was made public. These findings … are not just troubling, they are appalling, that we have let these things go on in our city.”

“We need action, we need activity,” she said. “We need for the City Council and others to recognize that you must immediately do something to rectify the situation that has been allowed to go on. The report says that the city was an active or inactive or unintentional or whatever participant in what has been going on in the city. We need fairness.”

Cathy Adams, president of the Oakland African American Chamber of Commerce, said, “The report in my opinion was very clear. It gave directions, and I feel that we should accept the consultant Dr. Ramsey’s recommendations.

“We understand what the disparities are; it’s going to be upon the city, our councilmembers, and our department heads to just get in alignment,” she said.

Said West Oakland activist Carol Wyatt, “For a diverse city to produce these results is a disgrace. The study shows that roughly 83% of the city contracting dollars went to non-minority white male-owned firms under so-called race neutral policies

These conditions are not “a reflection of a lack of qualified local firms,” she continued. “Oakland does not have a workforce shortage; it has a training, local hire, and capacity-building problem.”

“That failure must be examined and corrected,” she said. “The length of time the study sat without action, only further heightens the need for accountability.”

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Post Newspaper Invites NNPA to Join Nationwide Probate Reform Initiative

The Post’s Probate Reform Group meets the first Thursday of every month via Zoom and invites the public to attend. The Post is making the initiative national and will submit information from its monthly meeting to the NNPA to educate, advocate, and inform its readers.

Published

5 days ago

February 10, 2026

Oakland Post

iStock.

By Tanya Dennis

The National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) represents the Black press with over 200 newspapers nationwide.

Last night the Post announced that it is actively recruiting the Black press to inform the public that there is a probate “five-alarm fire” occurring in Black communities and invited every Black newspaper starting from the Birmingham Times in Alabama to the Milwaukee Times Weekly in Wisconsin, to join the Post in our “Year of Action” for probate reform.

Reporter Tanya Dennis says, “The adage that ‘When America catches a cold, Black folks catch the flu” is too true in practice; that’s why we’re engaging the Black Press to not only warn, but educate the Black community regarding the criminal actions we see in probate court: Thousands are losing generational wealth to strangers. It’s a travesty that happens daily.”

Venus Gist, a co-host of the reform group, states, “ Unfortunately, people are their own worst enemy when it comes to speaking with loved ones regarding their demise. It’s an uncomfortable subject that most avoid, but they do so at their peril. The courts rely on dissention between family members, so I encourage not only a will and trust [be created] but also videotape the reading of your documents so you can show you’re of sound mind.”

In better times, drafting a will was enough; then a trust was an added requirement to ‘iron-clad’ documents and to assure easy transference of wealth.

No longer.

As the courts became underfunded in the last 20 years, predatory behavior emerged to the extent that criminality is now occurring at alarming rates with no oversight, with courts isolating the conserved, and, I’ve heard, many times killing conservatees for profit. Plundering the assets of estates until beneficiaries are penniless is also common.”

Post Newspaper Publisher Paul Cobb says, “The simple solution is to avoid probate at all costs. If beneficiaries can’t agree, hire a private mediator and attorney to work things out. The moment you walk into court, you are vulnerable to the whims of the court. Your will and trust mean nothing.”

Zakiya Jendayi, a co-host of the Probate Reform Group and a victim herself, says, “In my case, the will and trust were clear that I am the beneficiary of the estate, but the opposing attorney said I used undue influence to make myself beneficiary. He said that without proof, and the judge upheld the attorney’s baseless assertion. In court, the will and trust is easily discounted.”

The Black press reaches out to 47 million Black Americans with one voice. The power of the press has never been so important as it is now in this national movement to save Black generational wealth from predatory attorneys, guardians and judges.

The next probate reform meeting is on March 5, from 7 – 9 p.m. PST. Zoom Details:
Meeting ID: 825 0367 1750
Passcode: 475480

All are welcome.

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Community Celebrates Turner Group Construction Company as Collins Drive Becomes Turner Group Drive

The event drew family, friends, and longtime supporters of Turner Group Construction, along with a host of dignitaries. The mood was joyful and warm, filled with hugs, handshakes and belated New Year’s greetings. Guests enjoyed hors d’oeuvres and a festive display of gourmet cupcakes as they conversed about the street sign reveal.

Published

5 days ago

February 10, 2026

Oakland Post

The Turner Construction group members.

By Carla Thomas

It was a family affair on Friday, Jan. 23, at the corner of Hegenberger Road and Collins Drive in East Oakland as community members, local leaders, and elected officials gathered to celebrate the renaming of Collins Drive to Turner Group Drive. The renaming saluted the Turner Group’s 45-plus years of economic development and community investment.

Special guests included former Alameda County Supervisor Keith Carson, veteran broadcaster Valerie Coleman-Morris, Chevron Senior Public Affairs Representative Andrea Bailey, community leaders Cephus “Uncle Bobby” Johnson and Beatrice “Aunt Bea” Johnson of the Oscar Grant Foundation, and Oakland City Councilmembers Ken Houston, Carroll Fife, and Kevin Jenkins. Members of WEBCORE, the Nor Cal Carpenters Union, the National Association of Minority Contractors (NAMC), Swinerton and Alten construction companies, activists Elaine Brown and David Newton, and many others joined the celebration.

Inside the event tent, an emotional Oakland City Councilmember Ken Houston spoke of his deep connection to the Turner family.

“I grew up on the same street with the Turners,” he said. “When my father passed away, their parents and siblings embraced me like family. This is our city, and it’s an honor to name this street Turner Group Drive because of the love and effort this company and family have given. Many dreams came out of this building. I wouldn’t be where I am today without the Turners.”

Councilmember Kevin Jenkins, whose father once taught the Turner brothers, added, “Len Turner is an amazing person. He’ll help anyone.”

Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee praised the company’s legacy, noting its creation of the Construction Resource Center, which trains and mentors the next generation of builders and developers through partnerships across the region. “This is a great day for Oakland and a profound acknowledgment of the Turner Group’s contribution to our community,” she said.

Fife echoed that sentiment: “This is a day for celebrating Black excellence. The Turner Group has poured into people and the community, showing us what’s possible.”

Among the many family members in attendance was the Turners’ 92-year-old patriarch, whose presence underscored the strength of the family’s legacy.

A touching highlight of the event came when Coleman-Morris was honored for her lasting mentorship of LaTanya Hawkins, now program manager of the Construction Resource Center. In 1979, Hawkins, then a fourth-grader, wrote Coleman-Morris a letter seeking advice. Coleman responded with words of encouragement that inspired Hawkins to pursue her dreams. The two stayed in touch for decades. On stage, they embraced as Coleman reflected on “the power of small acts of kindness to change a life.”

Coleman-Morris also shared reflections on leadership and community spirit, saying, “If we change the way we look at things, the things we see will change.” She then recited the Serenity Prayer, reminding the crowd, “We are a powerful community, we just need to believe it.”

Company leaders Len and Lance Turner closed the ceremony with words of gratitude and humor. Len thanked his mother, wife, family, legal team, and longtime supporters including Carson, Geoffrey Pete, and the late Dorothy King of Everett & Jones Barbecue. He also acknowledged the challenges the company had overcome, saying, “Without all of this support, I wouldn’t be here today.”

Through Turner Group Construction and the Construction Resource Center, the Turners have created new opportunities for underrepresented groups in the construction industry and continue to inspire the next generation of builders.