The San Jose Planning Commission recommended denying plans to expand Good Samaritan Hospital based on its controversial owner — a stunning decision for a hospital that has been part of the community for decades.
Commissioners voted 7-1 recommending against the hospital’s more than 1 million-square-foot expansion to the San Jose City Council. The final decision will be made by the city council at a later date. Commissioner Pierluigi Oliverio was the sole no vote and Commissioner Melissa Bickford was absent.
Representatives for the hospital said they need to demolish a portion of the structure for two new hospital wings, parking structures and a medical office totaling 21 acres to meet California earthquake mandates. But critics of the hospital’s parent company, HCA Healthcare , urged city officials to pause the proposed expansion until they study the impact of the health service downgrades at Regional Medical Center on the East Side…