Federal regulators at the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services , an agency within the Department of Health and Human Services, are requiring that Laguna Honda discharge as many patients as possible before Sept. 13, the soonest possible date of closure for the hospital if recertification is unsuccessful.
On Tuesday, the Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to pass a resolution that calls on U.S. Secretary Xavier Becerra of the Department of Health and Human Services to “suspend the requirement to relocate and transfer vulnerable patients at Laguna Honda Hospital while it is trying to regain certification.”
“We cannot declare victory yet, but the pressure to stop this brutality was just increased significantly today,” said Joseph Urban, whose mother-in-law lives at Laguna Honda. “This cause isn’t a theoretical problem. Four people from Laguna Honda have already died because of this CDPH & CMS program. More are about to die if it continues.”
The resolution put forward by Supervisor Melgar is largely symbolic and does not carry any binding authority. The hospital must continue to implement its closure plan unless a change of action is approved by federal regulators.