Santa Clara County in Northern California has agreed to purchase Regional Medical Center (RMC), a San Jose hospital owned by HCA Healthcare.
Last August, HCA downgraded RMC’s trauma designation from Level II to Level III. The county is purchasing the hospital in order to restore the hospital’s Level II designation and ensure the availability of other emergency services.
Trauma downgrade shifted volume to other centers
RMC is the only hospital in the city’s East San José neighborhood, one of the poorest areas in Santa Clara County. Historically, the 258-bed hospital has seen annual trauma volumes of 2,450 trauma patients per year, according to a press release.
County officials say last year’s trauma center downgrade at RMC created a surge in trauma patients at county-owned Santa Clara Valley Medical Center (SCVMC), a Level I trauma center 15 miles from RMC.
“For the period from February 2024 (when RMC first announced its plans to reduce trauma services) through July 2024, the number of trauma patients at SCVMC increased 25% compared with the same period from the prior year,” according to a county FAQ page. “In the first month after services were reduced at RMC in August 2024, the number of trauma patients at SCVMC jumped more than 50% compared with the same period from the prior year.”
Goal is to avoid other costs, maintain trauma access
Purchasing RMC will allow the county to avoid the cost of expanding trauma and other emergency services at other county facilities. The transaction will also allow the county to maintain critical services where they are most needed.
The county plans to reestablish RMC’s Level II status immediately upon assuming hospital operations. Short-term plans include restoring the hospital’s STEMI and comprehensive stroke services, which were also curtailed last August.
“The County also plans to ultimately restore obstetrics, labor and delivery, and newborn care services, which were closed at RMC in 2020,” according to the FAQ.
Santa Clara County will pay $150 million for RMC, according to the press release. The transaction is expected to close on April 1.