HCMC warns closure without Target Field tax rescue
Hennepin Healthcare says Hennepin County Medical Center lost more than $100 million in 2024 caring for patients who cannot pay and could be forced to shut down unless the state agrees this session to redirect Target Field sales‑tax revenue to hospital operations. Hennepin County Commissioner Jeffrey Lunde told FOX 9 the county will know by May whether lawmakers sign off; if they refuse, he says the county would begin a 12–18‑month HCMC shutdown process that would itself cost about $100 million. DFL Sen. Alice Mann, an emergency physician, warned that 'if HCMC shuts down, we will see patient deaths' and predicted ERs across Minnesota would overflow, since HCMC is the backstop for complex, indigent cases from rural and smaller hospitals as well as the core Level I trauma center for Minneapolis. The proposal would repurpose a long‑standing sales tax currently used to pay off Target Field debt and effectively turn a ballpark financing stream into a hospital bailout. For Twin Cities residents, the fight now squarely pits stadium dollars against the survival of the region’s main safety‑net hospital at the height of Medicaid turmoil and looming federal cuts.
📌 Key Facts
- Hennepin Healthcare reports HCMC lost over $100 million in 2024, largely due to treating patients who cannot pay.
- Hennepin County is asking the Legislature to redirect Target Field debt‑service sales tax revenue to keep HCMC open.
- Commissioner Jeffrey Lunde says if lawmakers do not agree by May, the county would start a 12–18‑month HCMC shutdown that could cost about $100 million.
- Sen. Alice Mann, MD, warns that closing HCMC would cause patient deaths and leave hospitals and ERs statewide full.
- HCMC serves as the tertiary referral center for complex, unfunded cases from rural and smaller Minnesota hospitals.
📊 Relevant Data
In 2023, Hennepin Healthcare's primary care patients were 75.1% people of color, including 35.6% Hispanic/Latino and 33.2% Black, compared to the service area's population which is 41.1% people of color (17.9% Black, 9.7% Hispanic) and 58.9% White.
2025 Community Health Needs Assessment and Implementation Plan Report — Hennepin Healthcare
Approximately 9% of Hennepin Healthcare patients are self-pay or uninsured, with 70% on government insurance (42% Medicaid), contributing to high levels of uncompensated care as the largest provider for uninsured individuals in Minnesota.
2025 Community Health Needs Assessment and Implementation Plan Report — Hennepin Healthcare
In Hennepin County from 2018-2022, uninsured rates were higher among Hispanic/Latino (17%), American Indian or Alaska Native (12%), and Black or African American (8%) adults compared to the overall rate of 5%.
Community health assessment, 2024 — Hennepin County Public Health
Nationally in 2023, uninsured rates for nonelderly adults were 17.9% for Hispanic, 9.7% for Black, and 18.7% for American Indian and Alaska Native people, compared to 6.5% for White people, with disparities potentially widening due to immigration policies and Medicaid changes.
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