Today healthcare workers gathered at the Minnesota State Capitol to issue a dire warning to legislators on break that time is running out to save Hennepin County Medical Center—a critical safety-net hospital and the state’s busiest Level 1 trauma center.
Nurses, residents, paramedics, interpreters, and frontline staff including members of the Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA), American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Council 5, Local 977 and Local 2474, the Hennepin County Association of Paramedics and EMTs (HCAPE), Minnesota Newspaper & Communications Guild/TNG-CWA Local 37002 and the Committee of Interns and Residents (CIR/SEIU) stood united in their call on elected officials to take immediate action to save HCMC as soon as they return from legislative break.
“This is a moral failure of our healthcare system—this is a system that rewards turning patients away and punishes the place that takes everyone in,” said Jeremy Olson-Ehlert, MNA second vice president and registered nurse at HCMC. “This is not a failure of HCMC. This is a failure of how we choose to fund care in Minnesota and across America. The consequences are not theoretical. If HCMC is shuttered, patients will wait longer in emergency rooms and hospitals across Minnesota will lose the partner they rely on.”
Legislators went on a break from session with no significant action taken so far to address HCMC’s financial situation. When legislators return to session, they will have less than 50 days to introduce bills and hold hearings that would save HCMC—ultimately protecting patients who are uninsured, in crisis, or in need of specialized treatment that other hospitals cannot provide.
“If HCMC closes, our patients don’t disappear. The emergencies don’t stop. What happens instead is that the entire system starts to strain under the weight,” said Shane Hallow, president of HCAPE and paramedic with Hennepin EMS. “Emergency departments across the Twin Cities will take on more than they’re built for. Ambulances will spend more time waiting to transfer care. Response times will increase because paramedics are tied up longer. And for patients, that means delays in care at the exact moment when minutes matter most.”
Without legislative action, HCMC will close.
“We cannot stress the dire importance of this situation enough for the people of Minnesota,” said Theo Catchings, member of AFSCME Local 2474, Council 5 and clinical associate at HCMC. “If you are shot anywhere in Minnesota, chances are you will see us at HCMC. If you experience a burn from a fire or chemical burn, you will almost certainly receive care at HCMC. And if you are exposed to deadly carbon monoxide, HCMC has the only emergency 24/7 hyperbaric chamber in the Upper Midwest. Without us on the job, Minnesotans and residents of the entire Upper Midwest region would be without lifesaving care and that is an unacceptable option.”
“HCMC is more than a hospital: it’s a lifeline. It is a place where people are treated with dignity, no matter who they are or where they come from,” said Dr. Nicole Lund, CIR member and emergency medicine resident physician at HCMC. “We want to continue providing care to our communities and the surrounding areas, but we cannot do it without support.”
Healthcare workers and HCMC coalition partners will continue to stand in solidarity, urging elected officials to take swift legislative action—ensuring the hospital remains a resource for Minnesotans counting on it in their most vulnerable moments.
