For Immediate Release
City of Long Beach to Recommend Molina, Wu, Network, LLC. as the Next Operator of Community Hospital
At the next regular meeting of the Long Beach City Council on Tuesday, June 19th, the City Council will consider selecting a new operator for Community Hospital. City staff will request authorization to engage in exclusive negotiations with the Molina, Wu, Network, LLC. (MWN) healthcare group, to negotiate an agreement for the future operation of Community Hospital Long Beach. Members of the community are invited to the meeting at City Hall to express their opinion about the need to preserve critical life-saving services at the historic site.
“Community Hospital has been an incredibly important asset to residents for over 100 years,” stated Mayor Garcia. “We are absolutely thrilled to have a partner with the experience of MWN to work with the City to ensure a life-saving hospital in East Long Beach. A smooth transition and keeping the hospital open during this handoff is now up to MemorialCare.”
On March 5, 2018, MemorialCare, the current operator of Community Hospital, formally notified the City of their decision to terminate the lease agreement at Community Hospital, effective July 3. Since that time, the City Council authorized the City Manager to conduct a targeted request for information process to identify potential operators with the demonstrated ability to continue a general acute care facility, including an emergency department with basic support services, at the site.
“The City Council has been very clear that a publicly-accessible emergency department continues to be the number one priority for the site,” said Councilmember Daryl Supernaw. “We have completed an exhaustive process to identify an operator that has the operational, financial, and engineering experience to address this priority and to get the job done.”
Since receiving the notice that MemorialCare could no longer operate Community Hospital, the City’s Economic Development Department received five non-binding proposals from interested operators and engaged in an exhaustive due diligence process that included extensive review of the operational, engineering, and financial plan for the Site. As a result of this process, City staff are recommending MWN as the next operator of the hospital. If approved, it will be up to MemorialCare to negotiate a transition process to keep the hospital open.
Many Long Beach residents have made it clear they would like to see the doors of Community Hospital remain open. The City of Long Beach will continue engaging with local and statewide stakeholders with an interest in supporting quality health care and seismic compliance at Community Hospital, including users and providers of the region’s emergency medical system, potential hospital operators, and workforce groups.
Community Hospital is a 158-licensed bed, general acute care and psychiatric care hospital located at 1720 Termino Avenue in Long Beach. To be a hospital in California means to have a duly constituted governing body with overall administrative and professional responsibility and an organized medical staff that provides 24-hour inpatient care, inclusive of eight basic services: medical, nursing, surgical, anesthesia, laboratory, radiology, pharmacy and dietary services. Community Hospital currently meets these basic requirements and provides psychiatric care services.
About the City of Long Beach
Home to approximately 470,000 people, the multiple award-winning and innovative City of Long Beach offers all the world-class amenities of a large metropolitan city while maintaining a strong sense of individual and diverse neighborhoods nestled together along the California coast. Long Beach is home to the Queen Mary, Aquarium of the Pacific, several museums and theaters, a highly-rated school district, Long Beach Airport, the Port of Long Beach, as well as many award-winning City departments such as Health, Parks, Recreation and Marine, Development Services and more. The City also has a highly-respected university and city college, two historic ranchos, five hospitals, five golf courses, 170 parks, miles of beaches, marinas, bike paths, and a Bike Share program.
For more information about the City of Long Beach, visit http://longbeach.gov/. Follow us on social to keep up with the latest news: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.
About Economic Development
The mission of the City’s Economic Development Department is to create economic opportunities for workers, investors, and entrepreneurs through its innovative 10-Year Blueprint for Economic Development. This includes making it easier to start and grow a business, streamline the process for property development, and provide businesses with a skilled workforce. The Department includes Property Development, Business Development, and the Pacific Gateway Workforce Investment Network. For more information on the Economic & Property Development Department, please visit http://www.longbeach.gov/economicdevelopment/or follow us on Twitter @LBEconDev and Facebook.
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