San Luis Obispo County Municipal Code Art. I Administrative

This chapter shall be known as the San Luis Obispo General Hospital Ordinance.

The people of the County of San Luis Obispo, State of California, find and declare as follows:

(1) San Luis Obispo General Hospital has, for over 100 years, provided essential health care services to the residents of San Luis Obispo County.

(2) Throughout its history General Hospital has been a publicly run facility, owned by the residents of San Luis Obispo County, and operated on behalf of the residents of San Luis Obispo County by the County of San Luis Obispo.

(3) The employees of General Hospital have provided, and continue to provide quality health care services to the residents of San Luis Obispo County.

(4) General Hospital plays a unique and critical role in keeping the residents of San Luis Obispo County healthy by fulfilling the obligation to provide care to the indigent and underserved, to Medicare and Medi-Cal patients, and to all expectant mothers regardless of their ability to pay.

(5) Any decision to close, sell, lease or otherwise transfer the management of General Hospital will significantly and permanently impact the health care delivery system in San Luis Obispo County.

Therefore, the residents of San Luis Obispo County, as the owners of General Hospital including all its assets, both tangible and intangible, have the right to approve or disapprove any proposal to sell, lease, or otherwise dispose of these assets by a vote of the people.

The County of San Luis Obispo and General Hospital shall comply with all applicable local, state and federal laws and regulations to ensure access to the highest quality patient care for all residents of San Luis Obispo County without discrimination.

In accordance with General Hospital's Mission Statement, adopted March 16, 1990, this initiative shall ensure that San Luis Obispo County General Hospital will continue to utilize all available resources to improve the health of the residents of San Luis Obispo County regardless of their ability to pay for these services in a manner that seeks to contain the growth of health care costs.