Cincinnati NAACP: Hospital closure weakens safety net

The Cincinnati NAACP charged last week that Mercy Health Partners’ plans to close two urban hospitals and replace them with one in a more suburban location would weaken safety net services for low-income patients in the area  (Source: “NAACP: Hospital closings hurt poor,” Cincinnati Enquirer, Jan. 4, 2009).

"What is currently unfolding before our eyes is Mercy Health system's urban divestment strategy, weakening safety net services to the poor," wrote local NAACP President Christopher Smitherman to Mercy officials. "The NAACP does not support weakening safety net health care services to the poor, nor should you."

Mercy officials say the new hospital is located about five miles away from the two that are being shuttered and will still serve the area’s residents.

The decision by Mercy is the latest in a string of developments that some say will negatively impact safety net services in the Cincinnati area. With the Health Alliance of Greater Cincinnati on the verge of breaking up, there is fear by some city leaders that University Hospital will be left solely responsible for serving the area’s poor.