Health Care - Health Care & Wellness

Illness and injury are never on anyone’s agenda, but if the unexpected happens while you’re in Santa Barbara, it’s reassuring to know you have quick access to first-­rate health care. The city offers the best concentration of health care facilities on the California coast between Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay area. Every day, people from all parts of the state—and other areas of the country and the world, for that matter—come to Santa Barbara seeking quality health care services. Many of our hospitals and clinics date back a century or more, and our physicians and other health care practitioners rank among the best in the nation.

About the only medical services you won’t have access to here are treatment for serious burns and organ transplants, and even those types of care can be found at highly rated institutions just an hour or two south of the county line.

Our community emphasizes preventive health care and offers many classes and services designed to promote good health. Most hospitals and clinics accept major insurance plans. However, health maintenance organizations (HMOs) are growing rapidly in the area, and along with the growth have come many changes, especially regarding physician choice. It’s best to call and check beforehand with the individual hospital, clinic, or physician and your insurer to discuss coverage.

Overview

We begin this chapter with an overview of our main hospitals and affiliates, followed by descriptions of major clinics and alternative health care resources. We’ve also included handy lists of walk-­in clinics, emergency numbers, and support services.