In response to Sutter’s announcement on Feb. 19, 2025 that the hospital system is finalizing plans for a $1 billion complex in Emeryville, Kate Freeman, RN in the emergency department at Summit Medical Center and member of California Nurses Association, provided the following statement:

“Sutter nurses demand the maintenance of health care services in our Berkeley community and that the hospital system fulfill its obligation to seismically retrofit the Ashby campus. We are especially concerned that Sutter does not have a plan for continuing services beyond the 2030 seismic retrofit deadline—three years before the in-patient hospital is projected to open in Emeryville. Nurses will be using the power of our union to demand transparency and dialogue, so that our patients and our communities receive the safe and equitable transition they deserve.”

On February 20, Sutter held two discussions for staff about the expansion. Each lasted only 30 minutes with a brief five-minute Q&A session, hardly enough time for nurses to get into the practical details about how this expansion impacts health care services. Union nurses at Sutter will be seeking answers from the health system about service plans and the implementation of new artificial intelligence technology at its Emeryville campus. 

California Nurses Association/National Nurses United is the largest and fastest-growing union and professional association of registered nurses in the nation with more than 100,000 members in more than 200 facilities throughout California and more than 225,000 RNs nationwide.