More patients have streamed through the hospital\u2019s doors since the county acquired it<\/a> in 2025. The hospital\u2019s emergency department sees about 80,000 patients a year \u2014 up 22% from before the county took over. Doctors also performed 46% more surgeries over the past year, according to statistics provided by the county.<\/p>\n \u201cThe county promised our East Side community that we would restore what was taken away and build something stronger in its place. And here we are today,\u201d Santa Clara County Supervisor Betty Duong, whose District 2 includes the hospital, said at a Wednesday news conference.<\/p>\n When Regional was previously under HCA Healthcare\u2019s ownership, the hospital downgraded trauma, heart attack and stroke care<\/a> and shuttered its maternity ward<\/a>, leaving residents with sparser options for care.<\/p>\n As the only hospital in East San Jose, Regional serves some of the most economically disadvantaged communities in the city, including uninsured patients<\/a>. The area has large immigrant, Latino and Asian populations who have called the East Side home for decades. The county\u2019s 2025 Latino Health Assessment<\/a> found that East Side residents have a high rate of emergency department visits due to domestic violence.<\/p>\n \u201cWe know that the East Side of San Jose has a large population (of) folks who are struggling, folks who need our services the most,\u201d District 1 County Supervisor Sylvia Arenas said at the news conference. \u201cWe are expanding our emergency capacity so that it meets the needs of our growing and diverse region.\u201d<\/p>\n The county restored labor and delivery<\/a> care at Regional Medical Center last October. The construction of the expanded emergency department had been in the county\u2019s plans when it acquired the hospital. The wing of the building had previously been closed under HCA Healthcare. The county expects to eventually add more doctors and nurses to the hospital as patients increase.<\/p>\n Daniel Nelson, chair of emergency medicine at Valley Medical Center and chief operating officer at Emergency Physicians Associates, said this expansion will help decrease treatment time and provide a better patient experience.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat this is going to allow is for us to bring those patients back into a room to further the treatment and decrease the time it takes for them to get all their testing done, get treatments, get a diagnosis and then get out of here,\u201d Nelson told San Jos\u00e9 Spotlight.<\/p>\n Rachel Ruiz, pediatric gastroenterologist at Valley Medical Center and chair of Valley Physicians Group, said the influx of patients at Regional is due to several reasons. One is that county hospitals do not turn patients away regardless of insurance status. She also points to workers establishing a culture at county hospitals where patients are embraced, which was bolstered when longstanding nurses and doctors from other county hospitals were transferred to pioneer care at Regional.<\/p>\n \u201cI think we succeeded in creating a welcoming environment,\u201d Ruiz told San Jos\u00e9 Spotlight. \u201cIf you\u2019ve had a good experience at Regional, you\u2019re going to tell your friends, your community. But more importantly, if you can trust the care that you receive there \u2026 trust goes a long way in our communities.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/IMG_9144-1024x768.jpeg\")
District 2 Santa Clara County Supervisor Betty Duong said the county has delivered on its promise to provide care to East San Jose after it acquired the hospital in April 2025. Photo by Joyce Chu.<\/p>\n
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