Attorney general approves sale of 6 Catholic hospitals

DALY CITY, Calif. (KGO) -- State attorney General Kamala Harris has approved the sale of six catholic hospitals in the state.

If she had turned down the deal, the Daughters of Charity warned they likely would have to shut the hospitals down.

The proposed sale of the daughters of charity's six hospitals became a passionate battle that divided its doctors, nurses and staff.

Harris' approval is conditional. Two of the main conditions of her approval is that Prime Healthcare, the proposed buyer, operate all six hospitals within the chain for at least 10 years and that they retrofit all the facilities.

The question is whether or not Daughters of Charity can finalize the deal with Harris' approval.

Hearings were held by the state attorney generals office to assess the impact a sale would have on the communities the hospitals serve.

As Catholic Mission hospitals, they took in patients regardless of their ability to pay. Most of their hospitals are in working class neighborhoods.

"That would be really awful because it helps so many people in this community," said Vari Avery, a visitor of Seton Medical Center.

But over the years, that mission contributed to its huge debt, plus there's the costs of earthquake retrofitting.

The Daughters of Charity want Prime Health care to buy its hospital chain, saying it's the best choice.

Prime Health Care promised to keep all six hospitals open for at least five years, assume pension costs and retire other debts, an $843 million package deal.

The proposed sale pitted two large unions against each other. The California Nurses Association supported the sale. SEIU hospital workers objected, saying Prime Health Care has a history of gutting services and slashing workers pay and benefits.

They wanted a private equity firm in New York to take over the hospitals.

The Daughters of Charity have said if the sale doesn't go through, bankruptcy is their only option, with some hospitals closing before they file.

"This is closest between the Peninsula and San Francisco, so it's really sad if they're going to close the hospital," Lilly Mulford, a Seton Medical Center patient said.

"A lot of people are going to lose their jobs and it's going to affect the community big time," Aaron Barruzo, healthcare agency worker said.

The Daughters of Charity say they'll have to carefully review any decision to see if the conditions are too stringent to make the sale work.