Supervisors Vote Tuesday on “Healthcare Impact Review” Legislation In Bid to Save St. Luke’s Hospital - 5,000 Sutter Nurses Prepare for Second Strike Against Chain

As 5,000 RNs from 13 Sutter Health facilities throughout Northern California prepare for their second strike against the healthcare giant on Thursday and Friday, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors will vote Tuesday on new legislation designed to make it more difficult for Sutter to close St. Luke’s Hospital, a landmark City institution with a mission to serve the underserved. 

Sup. Sophie Maxwell’s legislation is an ordinance to amend the city planning code to force medical facilities, such as Sutter Health, to file an institutional master plan and take into account citywide health needs and the impact of healthcare changes on the City’s healthcare safety net, as part of the permitting process.  The legislation passed its first reading unanimously, and if it passes again will be sent to Mayor Newsom for his expected signature.

Zenei Cortez, RN, a member of the CNA/NNOC Council of Presidents said “Sup. Maxwell’s legislation is groundbreaking.  A healthcare impact review will ensure that the needs of patients are foremost in the permitting process for medical facilities.  This is an idea that deserves to be studied for every community.”

The legislation reflects widespread outrage throughout San Francisco over Sutter’s attempts to close the beloved St. Luke’s.  Despite the fact that St. Luke’s is the only private hospital serving the southern half of the City, Sutter has engaged in a series of unit closures and personnel cuts designed to end its 136 years as an acute-care hospital. 

Sutter’s attempted closure is a clear example of “medical redlining,” as they hope to dump the poorer and heavily-Latino and African-American patient population of St. Luke’s in order to concentrate medical services in wealthier neighborhoods north of Market.  St. Luke’s management most recently announced plans to close a medical/surgical floor at the hospital. The decision follows Sutter’s announcement last month of its plans to eliminate in-patient pediatric and neonatal intensive care at St. Luke’s, and the 2005 closure of the psychiatric unit.

Sutter’s attempts to close community hospitals throughout the Bay Area has been a major flashpoint for the nurses in their attempts to negotiate a new contract.  Sutter aims to close St. Luke’s Hospital, Sutter Santa Rosa, and San Leandro Hospital—all of which serve a patient population that is poorer and composed of more people of color than other Sutter hospitals.

The RNs first walked out on Sutter in October, in a strike that was characterized by deep community support on the picket line, as nurses were joined by patients, doctors, elected officials, clergy, community groups, healthcare activists, advocates for seniors and the disabled, and others.  In November, RNs voted overwhelmingly to authorize their bargaining teams to call a second strike against Sutter.  This strike has been called for two days, starting Thursday at 7 a.m. through Saturday at 7 a.m.; however, Sutter has threatened to extend it to a four-day or five-day lockout at the majority of the facilities.

Nurses are also walking out because Sutter’s inadequate proposals leave serious patient care issues unaddressed, notably the demand for safe staffing at all times, even during nurse meal and rest breaks, as well as for guarantees that patient care will be protected in emergency rooms with dedicated Admit nurses, and that hospital Rapid Response teams will be available if a patient’s condition deteriorates.  At the same time, Sutter’s proposals for nurse health security, medical benefits, and pension improvements continue to be unsatisfactory to RNs and inferior to CNA standards established in contracts with Kaiser Permanente and other facilities.

Sutter hospitals affected are St. Luke’s Hospital and California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco, San Leandro Hospital, Alta Bates-Summit Medical Center in Berkeley and Oakland, Mills-Peninsula Health Services in Burlingame and San Mateo, Eden Medical Center in Castro Valley, San Leandro Hospital, Sutter Delta in Antioch, Sutter Solano in Vallejo, Sutter Medical Center of Santa Rosa, Sutter Marin General Hospital in Greenbrae, and Sutter Novato.