Final Decision: Saddleback Memorial Medical Center to Close San Clemente Hospital

SAN CLEMENTE, CA - The owners of Saddleback Memorial Medical Center announced today they will shut down the San Clemente hospital by the end of May.

Supporters of the hospital have been campaigning to keep it open since the summer of 2014 and characterized the closure as "prioritizing financial profits over people."

Hospital officials said the number of patients has been declining to a level that made operating it "unsustainable."

Sen. Patricia Bates, R-Laguna Hills, and Assemblyman Bill Brough, R-San Juan Capistrano, had pushed legislation that would have allowed Saddleback to put a satellite emergency department on the hospital campus, but the bill couldn't get out of committee.

"We share the disappointment felt by South Orange County residents over the impending closure of San Clemente Hospital," the lawmakers said in a joint statement.

"This closure is a symptom of a much larger problem in California's health care sector that the Legislature must address," they said. "Unless action is taken, we could see more emergency rooms close throughout the state due to the financial and regulatory challenges hospitals are facing."

The lawmakers said they "remain committed to preserving emergency services in South Orange County. We are considering all options and are consulting with community members to find a realistic solution that works for the region."

They blamed labor unions for killing the legislation.

"With today's closure announcement comes the loss of 150 good-paying jobs, jobs that South Orange County may never see again," the lawmakers' statement says. "We are hopeful that the labor unions who opposed our bills to save San Clemente Hospital will work with us in good faith to find a solution."

Saddleback officials also pointed a finger at the San Clemente City Council for rezoning the hospital campus to require hospital services.

Saddleback officials said that without a satellite emergency room and because of the new zoning, they could not afford to keep the hospital going.

"This is not a decision we reached quickly," said Tony Struthers, the hospital's administrator. "It is the result of many discussions and deliberations. This was not the outcome we had sought or expected.

"We had hoped the campus could be used to expand health care services in the community," he said. "We envisioned a new modern ambulatory center that would better meet the community's future health care needs and transform the campus into a health care destination."

There have been days when the number of inpatients were in the low teens, and some days when the number of patients was in the single digits, officials said.

Hospital supporters, however, argue that the medical center had a 9 percent profit margin, compared to the state average of 2.6 percent.

--City News Service; Image via Shutterstock