Legislation Extending Pacifica Hospital of the Valley’s Seismic Retrofit Deadline is Signed

SACRAMENTO – Today, Governor Newsom signed Assembly Bill (AB) 2404, authored by Assemblywoman Luz Rivas (D-San Fernando Valley). AB 2404 seeks to grant Pacifica Hospital of the Valley (Pacifica Hospital) an extension to seismically retrofit their buildings in order to continue providing medical service to an underserved community.

Under current law, Pacifica Hospital must submit plans to retrofit their buildings by the end of May 2022. Each day the State will issue a hefty fine if Pacifica Hospital is unable to meet the deadline.

During the pandemic, Pacifica Hospital became a safety net hospital for Los Angeles County, taking in COVID-19 patients throughout the region. This caused significant delays in Pacifica Hospital’s ability to meet their deadline to complete the project. As a result, Pacifica Hospital is incurring fines, which are not sustainable for a hospital where 80% of the patients they serve are on Medi-Cal and Medi-Cal/Managed Care.

“I am grateful for Governor Newsom’s support and for signing this legislation that will serve low-income patients throughout Los Angeles,” said Assemblywoman Luz Rivas. “Pacifica Hospital took in thousands of COVID-19 patients throughout the pandemic and supported members of our communities. By extending the hospital’s deadline, we are providing the healthcare that many Californians need access to. My district is grateful for their service. Now, it is our turn to support them.”

“During the pandemic, Pacifica Hospital of Sun Valley helped high volumes of COVID victims throughout the region,” Senator Hertzberg (D-Van Nuys) said. “Unfortunately, the focus on saving lives during a once-in-a-Century disease left little time to meet a recent earthquake-preparedness deadline. By signing AB 2404, Gov. Newsom is making it clear he and the Legislature understand it is now our turn to help Pacifica Hospital by granting an extension to avoid a $15,000 per day fine. This is the right thing to do, and a righteous way to help residents of the San Fernando Valley.”

“As sponsors of AB 2404, we would like to thank Assemblywoman Luz Rivas for authoring the bill,” stated Precious Mayes, CEO of Pacifica Hospital of the Valley. “When the pandemic derailed Pacifica Hospital’s timeline to meet its seismic retrofit deadline, I reached out to Assemblywoman Luz Rivas and requested legislation to grant Pacifica Hospital a short deadline extension to meet seismic compliancy. We do not want to jeopardize the safety of our patients and staff, and this bill will allow Pacifica Hospital to safely retrofit our hospital, while keeping the doors open to serve the community.”

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Assemblywoman Luz Rivas proudly represents the 39^th Assembly District, which includes the City of Los Angeles communities of Arleta, Lake View Terrace, Granada Hills, Mission Hills, North Hollywood, Pacoima, Sun Valley, Sunland-Tujunga, Sylmar, and the City of San Fernando.