Two California lawmakers introduced bills intended to slow maternity ward closures after a CalMatters investigation found nearly 50 hospitals had ende

California hospitals keep closing their labor wards. Can lawmakers do anything about it?

submited by

Style Pass

2024-04-17 13:00:07

Two California lawmakers introduced bills intended to slow maternity ward closures after a CalMatters investigation found nearly 50 hospitals had ended labor and delivery services between 2012 and 2023.

In just the first few months of 2024, four California hospitals have closed or announced plans to close their maternity wards.

The closures are part of an accelerating trend unfolding across the state, creating maternity care deserts and decreasing access to prenatal care. In the past three years, 29 hospitals stopped delivering babies, according to a CalMatters investigation on maternity ward closures. Nearly 50 obstetrics departments have closed over the past decade.

Assemblymember Akilah Weber and Sen. Dave Cortese are pursuing legislation to increase transparency around planned maternity ward closures, potentially giving counties and the state time to intervene.

Weber, a Democrat from La Mesa, wants hospitals to notify the state a year in advance if labor and delivery services are at risk of ending. The measure would also require the state to conduct a community impact report when a hospital indicates that it may lose maternity care.