Board of Supervisors Cites "Medical Redlining" as Sutter's Motivation for Closing St. Luke's

Mirkarimi Legislation Demonstrates City Commitment to St. Luke’s, as Broad Community Coalition Rallies to Save San Francisco Landmark

The Board of Supervisors of the City and County of San Francisco today condemned Sutter Health for medical redlining with its attempts to close St. Luke’s Hospital, and directed the city attorney to explore legal options to keep the hospital open as a full acute-care service facility.  Sutter’s attempted closure of St. Luke’s has sparked widespread opposition, including many community protests and three strikes by the registered nurses employed there.

Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi authored the legislation on medical redlining, a term referring to systemically denying medical care to underserved communities, in this case the communities of color who rely on St. Luke’s, which is the only private hospital in the southern half of the city.  Sutter has convened a “Blue Ribbon Panel” to review the future of the facility, but its intentions remain unclear.

Zenei Cortez, RN, a member of the CNA/NNOC Council of Presidents said, “This is an unprecedented effort between elected officials, caregivers, patients, and the community to save St. Luke’s Hospital.  We applaud Supervisor Mirkarimi’s leadership in this effort. Closing this facility, with its mission to serve the underserved, will harm San Francisco’s public health.  We just can’t let that happen.”   

The Mirkarimi legislation notes that Sutter is “abandoning services provided to uninsured people, Hispanic and African American residents, and medically underserved neighborhoods in San Francisco and expanding hospital operations for access by insured, middle and upper-income, non-Hispanic, largely non-African American residents.”  From 2006-2007, St. Luke’s treated a patient population that was 39.56 percent Hispanic and 17.82 percent African-American.  By contrast, Sutter’s favored hospital north of Market served a patient population that was less than 1 percent Hispanic and only 6.41 percent African American.