MID-CITY — Saint John's Medical Center passed its physical.
California Deputy Attorney General Wendi A. Horwitz signed off on the proposed sale of the hospital from one Catholic nonprofit to another if the buyer fulfills a series of conditions.
Current owners, Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth Health Systems, would sell the hospital to Providence Health System, which has strong roots in Southern California.
The deal, according to the attorney general's report, would total $125 million plus "an amount of money equal to the Closing Working Capital."
Saint John's officials don't know when the deal might close.
"SCL Health System and Providence are reviewing the final agreement, and Saint John's is looking forward to the finalization of the transition," said Saint John's spokesperson Sarah Phelan.
Providence must spend $100 million on ongoing capital and operational support of the hospital over the next three years, the attorney general said.
Another condition set forth by the attorney general is that Providence maintain the development agreement currently in place with City Hall.
The new owners will have to give $2.81 million (plus inflation increases) in charity care every year for the next six years, the attorney general's report said.
They'll also have to give $3.37 million (plus inflation) in community benefits every year for the next 10.
Those benefits will go to the Venice Family Clinic, the Ocean Park Community Center (OPCC), the Westside Family Health Center, and the Cleft Palate Center Clinic.
More than 2,300 Santa Monicans were discharged from Saint John's in 2012, according to the report.
There is no mention of parking in the document. At a hearing, hosted by the attorney general, residents, employees, and patients expressed their opinions about the potential sale.
Several neighbors spoke at the meeting, asking the attorney general to include new parking requirements under its list of conditions.
They claim that the high price of parking causes patients and employees to park in the already crowded neighborhood.
Several employees responded saying that residents exaggerate the parking issues.
City Hall is currently reviewing a parking study paid for by Saint John's that examined, among other things, affordability of parking at the hospital.
It costs $10 to park for more than 90 minutes and $35 for a day pass, according to Saint John's website.
Saint John's lost $8.6 million in 2012. The hospital struggles to compete as a stand-alone facility, according to a previous report from the attorney general. Patients and doctors choose larger networks that have consolidated, the report said.
Several health care professionals spoke at the attorney general's public meeting last year, lauding the proposed deal for the connections it would provide to Providence's larger hospital network.
One in four Los Angeles County hospitals is owned by Providence, a Providence executive said at the meeting. They are the eighth largest employer in the county, he added.
dave@www.smdp.com
