Sutter Health operates a nonprofit which pays its CEO well over $5,000,000 and nearly 30 other excutives over $1,000,000. In the mid 2000s defending themselves in a court litigation, they claimed not to own any hospitals. This year in more court procedings, they claim they do own, at least one hospital. In the last year when figures are available, they claimed a profit of nearly 3/4 of a BILLION dollars!
They refuse to release financial information for at least one of their satellite hospitals. At a 49 bed hospital in northern California they hold closed board meetings, refuse to release meeting minutes, force dissenting board members to leave the room while they discuss a contentious subject. They maintain at least three of the nine board appointments who receive their salary and benefits from a Sutter Health owned organization. The three Sutter Health employees on the board have never have never declared a conflict of interests before a vote of the Board. This is probably illeagal though I do not profess to give legal advice.
In the mid-2000s they pro0mised Lakeside Hospital that their downsizing the hospital from some 59 beds to 24 beds would not mean any service or jobs lost: some 600 jobs dropped to about 270 at Lakeside and two clinics in the area no longer exist.
Presently, they have wrested local control and ownership from Sutter Coast Hospital in Crescent City and are planning to downsize from 49 to 24 beds, convert the entire hospital to a Critical Access Facility solely to profit from the government program which directs the operation of such facilities, thus forcing hundreds to thousands of ER patients to transport by air at their own expense, at least some 80 miles taking hours of critical time, and forcing family members to travel at least that far to be with their loved one, and forcing patients to pay their own transportation expenses to get home.
They are secretive, devious, untruthful, and care very little about the population they serve; rather, they care only about having enough money to pay obscene salaries to their officers and administraters.
Before you donate any gift to this organization, please require they allow you to see their financial reports for the last five years and check the salaries and benefits of their officers and administrators.
(All of the above allegations are documented and backed by emails, letters, and other oral and written statements made by Sutter Health and/or Sutter Coast employees and by court and public meeting records as well as newspaper articles published in the service area of Sutter Coast.
Review from Guidestar