The following issues are addressed in this paper: (1) blacks are significantly dependent on public general hospitals for their medical care; (2) public hospitals represent an important community resource to the black community; (3) there are a number of forces at work on public general hospitals to either close or to significantly reduce the number and types of services provided by them; and (4) effective strategies must be developed if public general hospitals are to survive. Data are provided to show that blacks have higher proportions of health problems and less access to utilization of physician services than whites. Data are also presented to show that besides representing an important medical resource, public hospitals represent a major source of employment for blacks. In addition, it is argued that the thrust to control hospital costs puts public general hospitals in a vulnerable position and that the black community must take a more active part on all political levels to insure the viability of these institutions. (Author/EB)