Harborview reports financial turnaround, warns of Medicaid cuts; bond program faces parking and permitting risks

Harborview Medical Center told the King County Council Committee of the Whole on July 22 that the hospital achieved a substantial financial turnaround in fiscal 2025 but faces significant fiscal and operational risks from federal changes to Medicaid and other programs.

Summer Klavana Wally, chief executive officer of Harborview, said Harborview is "coming in this year at an 8.3% operating margin," and that the hospital is carrying "106.2 days cash on hand." Klavana Wally credited operational efficiencies and revenue improvements, as well as state-directed Medicaid payments and nonrecurring state appropriations, for the positive result. She also reported recent capital investments: Harborview opened two new inpatient units during the fiscal year — 20 single ICU beds and 20 single acute-care beds — and raised significant philanthropic support, including $22,250,000 overall and a $6,500,000 single gift for a neuroscience initiative.

Union and frontline staff representatives told the committee they remain concerned about staffing, recruitment and retention. Niru Kor, a respiratory care practitioner who said she has worked at Harborview for 23 years, said her department has "35% travelers working right now," called staffing turnover a…