Today, 95% of hospitals are able to withstand an earthquake and all will be able to by 2025. But the 2030 seismic safety mandate goes further, requiring hospitals to be fully operational after a seismic event. Statewide, this mandate will cost California hospitals $100 billion. Not all hospitals can afford this, and some will close. As we know, when one hospital closes, a whole community suffers with reduced access to care and increased pressure on the remaining providers.
SB 758 (Portantino) proposes a reasonable solution. This CHA-sponsored bill restructures the requirement to require that hospitals be fully operational only in areas where emergency medical services, surgical services, and post-surgical services would be provided for 72 hours following an earthquake. In addition, hospitals would be able to seek up to an additional 10 years to complete this work via retrofit or rebuild. Finally, hospitals in very low-risk seismic areas would be exempted from the requirement.
Help lawmakers understand why this matters to California’s communities. Join us to learn more about SB 758 to find out how you can help speak to your legislators, build local coalitions, and secure media coverage of the need to change this costly law.
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