In 1995 CNA sounded the alarm when Richmond shut down its intensive care unit and reduced emergency care. We warned of the danger of bad outcomes, filed a complaint with the Department of Health Services, picketed the facility and alerted the press. Our concerns went unheeded. What type of care is available is designed first and foremost to garner the greatest profits. Thus no full service emergency room in Richmond where the population is not as wealthy as others where Kaiser's Emergency Departments continue to exist.
Deaths make the point because they are dramatic.
It is illegal to impersonate a physician and practice medicine without a license. The healthcare industry is primarily self regulated. Medical redlining, disgracefully demonstrated by Kaiser s reduction of emergency services in Richmond and planned hospital closures in nearby Oakland and Martinez, is another form of cherry picking. That occurs when services are slashed and standards of care are ratcheted down for the lowest income and minority populations who because of socio-economic factors often experience greater health problems than the affluent communities where services are being sent. The medical corporations like Kaiser get away with this through a reliance on bare bones regulations and minimal public scrutiny.