Loan bill that would help distressed hospitals passes. Hope for Madera reopening
Madera Community Hospital could reopen under legislation heading to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk that would make more than $100 million available in loan assistance to struggling California hospitals.
Lawmakers including Assemblywoman Esmeralda Soria, D-Fresno, on Thursday announced the passage of the bill that would create an emergency loan program with $150 million available for hospitals experiencing financial hardship across the state.
The Madera hospital closed its doors in January.
In February, Soria introduced Assembly Bill 412 that would establish the emergency loan program. AB 412 was included into AB/Senate Bill 112 to speed up the process for the program, according to the announcement. AB/SB 112 passed in the Assembly and in the Senate and now requires Newsom’s signature to start.
“Reopening Madera Community Hospital has been my top priority this year. That is why I introduced AB 412 to create the Distressed Hospital Loan Program to provide immediate financial assistance to help Madera Community Hospital re-open,” Soria said in the announcement. “I am grateful to the Governor for prioritizing state assistance to re-open Madera Community Hospital.”
Soria worked alongside Sen. Anna Caballero, D-Merced, and Speaker-Designate Robert Rivas, D-Salinas, on the piece of legislation.
The program would be administered by the California Department of Health Care Access and Information. It would require hospitals to provide transparency about their financial condition and would create accountability to ensure the sustainability of the hospitals’ operations, according to the announcement.
The program, the announcement says, would also require the state to verify hospitals’ financial plans before any loan is approved. In April, Soria told The Bee if a viable plan is able to demonstrate that a hospital can stay open for a certain amount of time, the loan would become a grant.
Nonprofit and public hospitals experiencing significant financial woes would be eligible to apply for loans under the program.
“Ensuring that our hospitals remain open and able to serve patients has been priority number one for me this year,” Caballero said in the announcement. “The hospital closure in Madera and other looming closures would be catastrophic in both rural and urban communities.”
Rivas said he was grateful to Gov. Gavin Newsom and his legislative colleagues for their commitment to help struggling hospitals across the state so they can continue to provide life-saving care.
“California has established itself as a national leader in expanding healthcare options; access to medical facilities and infrastructure is critical and central to that mission,” Rivas said in the announcement. “California certainly has more work to do to ensure the long-term viability of distressed hospitals, but today is an important step in the right direction.”
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