The Fight to Save Mercy Hospital
The safety net hospital on the South Side declared bankruptcy, and the community fought hard to keep it open.
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Show Notes
Mercy Hospital in Chicago’s Bronzeville neighborhood is a safety net hospital, which means it takes any patient, regardless of income or insurance. But it’s been so much more than that. It's an institution on the South Side, where Chinese and Spanish speaking residents could talk to staff in their native language, and expectant mothers could deliver their babies close to home. So when the hospital declared bankruptcy in February, staff, patients, and neighbors were sad, scared, and worried about what would happen to Mercy. Those worries didn’t go away when the hospital was sold to a Michigan nonprofit. For the last year, WBEZ’s Kristen Schorsch has been following the hospital’s financial decline and its hopeful resurrection. She explains why places like Mercy are essential and what the future holds for it.
Guests:
Kristen Schorsch—Reporter, WBEZ
Etta Davis—Mercy Hospital patient and member of Chicago Health Equity Coalition
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