Santa Clara County finalizes agreement over purchase of Regional Medical Center – The Mercury News

SAN JOSE — Nearly five months after Santa Clara County revealed its plans to purchase Regional Medical Center in the wake of HCA Healthcare’s decision to downgrade the trauma center — an agreement for the sale has been reached.

The county will take over operations of the 258-bed East San Jose hospital on April 1, making it the fourth hospital in the Santa Clara Valley Healthcare System — the second-largest county-owned health and hospital system in the state.

The purchase bookends a nearly yearlong saga that sent shockwaves through the East Side as residents worried about the loss of a trauma center at close proximity, and county officials raised concerns about the potential strain it would have on the local healthcare system.

Santa Clara County is purchasing the hospital for $150 million — less than the $175 million previously agreed-upon price announced in August.

“In the long run, this is a real strategic move for the county,” County Executive James Williams told The Mercury News. “This is a huge win for the community. This is going to help ensure there is stability and access to integrated care for the entire eastern part of Santa Clara County, and that creates stability across the Santa Clara Valley Healthcare System.”

HCA (Hospital Corporation of America) originally intended to close Regional Medical Center’s trauma center completely and shutter certain services for cardiac arrest and stroke patients. But in July, the Tennessee-based healthcare giant announced that it would instead downgrade from a Level II to a Level III facility and retain some of those life-saving services. The changes took effect on Aug. 12, 2024.

County leaders and local healthcare professionals, however, said it wasn’t enough. Santa Clara County has no other Level II trauma centers and the downgrade to Level III left the hospital without certain subspecialties — like neurosurgery — on call. The next closest Level I trauma centers are Valley Medical Center, which is eight miles away, and Stanford Health Care, which is more than 20 miles away.

In a statement, HCA Healthcare Far West Division President
Jackie Van Blaricum said “our dedicated care-givers will be integral to ensuring Regional Medical Center makes a smooth transition to the Santa Clara Valley Health system. HCA Healthcare remains a strong community partner at Good Samaritan Hospital, and we look forward to continuing to provide the high-quality healthcare Santa Clara County deserves.”

Williams said the county’s first priority is to restore Regional Medical Center’s Level II trauma center designation, which he expects they’ll be able to do on the day the sale closes and the county takes over. He expects they’ll be able to restore the cardiac arrest and stroke services soon after.

Williams said the county still plans to restore labor and delivery services, which were closed at the hospital in 2020, but had no timeline on when that would occur.

“There will be no disruption in services,” Williams said of the ownership change. “The hospital itself literally will move from HCA operation to county operation overnight. There will not be any disruption or closure of the hospital itself.”

Recently-elected Supervisor Betty Duong, whose district includes Regional Medical Center, said in a statement that “the scaling back of health services at RMC has hit East San Jose hard.”

“The county’s purchase and saving of Regional Medical Center, located in the heart of one of the most marginalized and historically disadvantaged areas of our county, is essential to restore critical healthcare access,” she said.

Originally Published: January 13, 2025 at 2:51 PM PST