I’m Leading ‘No More Hahnemanns’ Effort

After the painful closure of Hahnemann University Hospital in North Philadelphia, I have increased my effort to keep our hospitals funded to serve Philadelphians who need health care. These institutions are also major employers and vital anchors in the neighborhoods they serve. This effort has taken on added urgency with the news of changes coming to Mercy Hospital in West Philadelphia.

My goal is not to preserve every health-care institution exactly as it is today, but to make sure that people throughout Philadelphia have access to quality, affordable health care near them, including hospital services. When changes happen, I want there to be a smooth transition for the patients and employees – unlike the poorly handled way the private-equity owner of Hahnemann closed it down.

I'm working to make sure our hospitals have the funding they need to keep serving our communities. I'm hopeful about our chances of success because this is not just a Philadelphia problem – it's also affecting rural areas and small towns across Pennsylvania and the nation.

This has enabled me to find Republican partners such as Congressman Mike Kelly from western Pennsylvania. We disagree on many issues – but we agree on the need to keep hospital services available for our communities. His district has also experienced a recent hospital closure, and he and I both serve on the Subcommittee on Health of the influential House Ways and Means Committee, which oversees Medicare and much of the U.S. health-care system.

Click the image above to watch my remarks about funding our hospitals at a recent House Ways and Means Committee hearing.

To determine next steps, I have convened meetings with House Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal and Pennsylvania Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine, as well as hospital executives and other key leaders. One potentially promising plan is adapting Pennsylvania's relatively new funding model for rural hospitals, many of which have struggled in the same way that urban hospitals have.

You can read more here about my bipartisan effort to keep our hospitals funded and vital health-care services available to our communities.