Legislators Issue Statement Regarding Verity Health System Bankruptcy Filing

For the past four years, the California Legislature has been engaged in the several changes in ownership of what was formerly known as the Daughters of Charity Health System, and known today as Verity Health System.

We were encouraged when Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong took control of the system a year ago — all while embracing the system’s mission of putting patients first and accepting the conditions California’s Attorney General required to approve the ownership change.

We were disheartened, however, by the recent news that Verity has filed for bankruptcy, jeopardizing the conditions put in place by the Attorney General to protect the patients and employees of the hospital system.

It is our expectation that the conditions required to purchase the safety net hospital system, which are sanctioned by California law and were agreed to by current Verity ownership, remain in place.

Verity is a non-profit health care system that’s vital to California’s safety net of hospitals that provide health care to the state’s most vulnerable patients. The system operates five acute care hospitals and other facilities throughout the state, comprising of about 1,680 licensed acute care and skilled nursing beds. Mindful of the possible consequences for statewide healthcare and the impact on other health care providers, California is relying on all the conditions to remain and enforced, including:

• For ten years, St. Francis Hospital, O’Connor Hospital, Saint Louise Hospital and Seton Medical Center must operate as acute care hospitals and offer emergency services.
• For ten years, Seton Coastside Hospital must operate as a skilled nursing facility with 24-hour emergency services and a minimum of 116 licensed skilled nursing beds.
• For five years, St. Vincent must operate as a general acute care hospital, providing 24-hour emergency medical services and a minimum of eight emergency treatment stations and six Fast Track stations.
• The six facilities must provide the same types and/or levels of emergency and non-emergency services to Medi-Cal beneficiaries and maintain Medi-Cal managed care contracts at each of the facilities.
• Charity care for needy patients and community benefits must be provided as conditioned.
• Substantially all of the 7,000 jobs at the health facilities will continue. Uphold all of its obligations under its numerous labor agreements, including its pension and retirement funding obligations.

It is our hope that every stakeholder in the bankruptcy process puts the patients and employees first, and that the laws that govern hospital sales in California are honored.

Anthony Rendon
Speaker of the Assembly
Assemblymember, District 63

Phil Ting
Assemblymember, District 19

Kevin Mullin
Assemblymember, District 22

Anna Caballero
Assemblymember, District 30

Wendy Carrillo
Assemblymember, District 51

Scott Wiener
State Senator, District 11

Jerry Hill
State Senator, District 13

Kevin De León
State Senator, District 24