Uptown and Edgewater community members and local elected officials are rallying to keep Weiss Memorial Hospital open.
The North Side safety-net hospital will likely close Friday as it’s set to lose major federal health insurance payments starting this weekend. State investigations found a monthslong pattern of Weiss being in and out of compliance with federal regulators due to issues with its emergency room, air-conditioning system and nursing staff.
As a result of the state’s findings, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will cut Weiss from Medicare and Medicaid. The hospital can no longer accept patients using federal insurance as of Saturday.
A group of local elected officials and 171 community members and organizations penned letters to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, also known as CMS, urging the federal agency to extend the deadline.
“Weiss has served as a critical healthcare anchor for decades, delivering essential medical services to thousands of residents across Uptown and Edgewater neighborhoods,” the letter from residents read. “We are asking you to extend the deadline for eight weeks for the Weiss ownership company to make the repairs needed to be compliant to receive Medicare payments.”
Weiss was informed it would lose Medicare access in a July 24 letter from CMS to Dr. Manoj Prasad, who owns Weiss. Federal regulations require that when a hospital is terminated from Medicare, it’s also cut from the Medicaid program, according to a spokesperson for the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services, which runs Medicaid.
The health care and family services inspector general’s office will file a notice to terminate Weiss from Medicaid effective the same day it is cut from Medicare, the spokesperson said.
Medicare and Medicaid payments made up 84% of Weiss’ total revenue in 2024, according to state records. The federal insurance plans cover patients who are elderly, low-income or have a disability.
“The ramifications of this decision are severe,” the letter continued. “Without swift action, our communities stand to lose not only a critical healthcare provider, but also a key employer and stabilizing force in the Uptown neighborhood. Residents who rely on Medicare will be left scrambling for care, and front line healthcare workers, already strained, face mounting uncertainty.”
Among the organizations included in the letter are ONE Northside, Northside Action for Justice, the People’s Response Network, The Night Ministry and the Vietnamese Association of Illinois.
The local officials who signed another letter are Alds. Angela Clay (46th), whose ward includes Weiss, Matt Martin (47th) and Leni Manaa-Hoppenworth (48th). County and state leaders also signed: Cook County Commissioner Bridget Gainer, whose 10th district includes Weiss, State Sens. Mike Simmons and Sarah Feigenholtz and Reps. Hoan Huynh and Kelly Cassidy.
“We are united in our commitment to keep Weiss open and serving the public,” the letter concludes. “We cannot afford to let an essential institution like Weiss Memorial Hospital disappear. The health and well-being of thousands of our residents depends on swift and coordinated action.”