Surpassing 8,300 Signatures on News That Providence Won't Create Micro Hospital w/ER

Today, we learned that Providence will not be moving forward with a micro hospital in Laguna Beach after agreeing to study it. In today's Orange County Register, "hospital officials said they made the decision after agreeing to study the idea and presented it to the city’s task force on Tuesday, Nov. 3, after their experts “conducted a thorough evaluation” of whether a small-scale hospital on the 22-acre South Laguna campus could provide a “sustainable alternative” to the existing model."

https://www.ocregister.com/2026/11/04/mission-hospital-in-laguna-beach-will-not-create-a-mini-version-with-an-er/?share=e0ahcrwaaowcic1mmtbv

“We were disappointed to hear yesterday from Providence that Providence does not see a way to include a micro-hospital with a 24/7 ER in their Laguna Beach campus’s future plans,” councilmembers Bob Whalen and Alex Rounaghi, who head up the city’s 16-member task force, said in a joint comment Wednesday. “A modern medical office building is fine, but we need emergency medical needs addressed.” 

"They said they had expected to see data, such as details about operating costs, supporting the health providers’ “unilateral decision,” but said that in the meeting on Tuesday, Providence officials did not share any of their analysis and simply verbally told the city leaders that it is not willing to proceed with a micro-hospital."

While we wait see if efforts to co-sponsor Sacramento legislation for a standalone emergency room is fruitful, we've reached 8,364 signatures. You can help us keep the momentum going by sharing this on Facebook, in groups, on Instagram, WhatsApp or sending it directly via text or email: https://www.change.org/Save_Laguna_Beach_Emergency_Room

Thanks for being part of this.