The Safety Net Moonshot is a proposal led by wealthy real estate investors and politicians to close or shrink Chicago’s safety-net hospitals. It would leave vulnerable communities with less access to healthcare, threaten thousands of local jobs, and weaken already struggling neighborhood economies.

This plan was developed without input from local safety-net hospital leaders or lawmakers and threatens to close or shrink hospitals that serve vulnerable Black and Brown communities. It risks reducing access to essential healthcare and harming local economies.

It would shrink healthcare access by closing or downsizing hospitals, leading to fewer local options for emergency and essential care, longer wait times, and increased barriers to treatment for the communities that depend on these hospitals most.

Thousands of local healthcare jobs are at risk. Safety-net hospitals are often the largest employers in their communities, and layoffs or facility closures would hurt frontline workers and create ripple effects in already economically vulnerable neighborhoods.

Safety-net hospitals act as major economic engines in Illinois’ poorest and minority communities. Closing or downsizing these hospitals threatens the survival and economic stability of entire neighborhoods.

Federal support for vulnerable communities has been reduced in recent years. Safety-net hospitals are facing increasing financial pressure, making cuts and closures even more dangerous. Now more than ever, these hospitals need investment – not downsizing.

Community members and lawmakers must speak out to protect safety-net hospitals, demand investments in community healthcare, and prevent closures or cuts that would harm access, jobs, and economic stability.