Los Angeles-based Cedars-Sinai and Pasadena, Calif.-based Huntington Hospital were among the healthcare organizations that temporarily paused some elective surgeries due to fire-related disruptions. Most health systems in the area also shuttered outpatient clinics and physician offices amid evacuation orders and heavy smoke.
Cedars-Sinai said it resumed a full surgical schedule and reopened most outpatient offices and surgery centers in a Jan. 16 media alert. Huntington Hospital said most elective procedures have resumed at its main campus and outpatient surgery center.
Keck Medicine of USC’s hospitals and emergency services are fully open and operational, according to a Jan. 16 update. Oakland, Calif.-based Kaiser Permanente also confirmed that all of its facilities in Southern California were open as of Jan. 16, including those that were closed last week due to evacuations.
UCLA Health said the wildfires are still disrupting clinic operations in Malibu and the Pacific Palisades as of Jan. 16. The system is working with patients to reschedule appointments and encouraging residents to reserve emergency department visits for urgent and life-threatening medical conditions.
The wildfires, which started Jan. 7, have killed at least 25 people, destroyed thousands of buildings and burned through tens of thousands of acres across the county. Two fires — the Palisades fire and Eaton fire — were still active as of Jan. 17 at 9 a.m. CST, at 31% and 65% containment, respectively, according to California’s Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.