North and West Side advocates are pushing Governor J.B. Pritzker to use his official powers to quickly reopen two important Chicago-area hospitals that have closed in the past 11 months: Weiss Memorial Hospital in the Uptown neighborhood of Chicago and West Suburban Medical Center in Oak Park. The closures have left thousands without a nearby emergency room or hospital-based care. Among them are many immigrants, refugee families, and people with low income, impacting the most vulnerable communities in already-underserved communities. The shutdowns have created a months-long health crisis, say community groups serving those residents. Now the Coalition to Save Safety Net Hospitals is demanding that community groups have a say in reopening the hospitals, and they want the State to act fast. The coalition is calling on the state to:

• Hold an immediate meeting with Gov. Pritzker and the state health agencies with the Coalition to Save Safety Net Hospitals and the affected communities and ensure that the community has a formal role in decisions about the hospitals’ future.

• Move to reopen both hospitals under new, responsible ownership, using the leverage the state holds as a major creditor and through its oversight of hospital ownership.

• Require community input into processes for reviewing extensions and decision-making, and require a credible, funded reopening plan as a condition for any further state support.