Aldermen Threaten Hospital Tax Status

By vouchey in News on Aug 3, 2004 12:00PM

Yesterday twenty-four Chicago aldermen, almost half of the fifty total, submitted a letter to Cook County Tax Assessor Jim Houlihan requesting that the county revoke the non-profit status of the Resurrection Hospital chain, and should have to pay property taxes on their holdings. The reason, the letter states, is that the eight Resurrection hospitals no longer provide enough "charity care" to their patients and community, and are actually just a for-profit organization in disguise.

This is a serious charge, and part of a number of larger issues bubbling up around Chicago and the country. Much of the research and charges against Resurrection have been organized by the Local 31, who have been working to organize the hospital's employees.

The issue of "charity care" and how much is necessary has also become a major national issue, as hospitals and patient advocates try to figure out how much free care a non-profit hospital should be obligated to provide. Unions like AFSCME have take the lead with the issue, hitting large hospital chains hard, while they simultaneously call on the hospitals' staff to organize. A similar tactic has been used by the Service Employees International Union against Chicago's Advocate Health Care and across the nation.