Hospital and Emergency Care in Laguna Beach

In an emergency

Call 911 for a life-threatening emergency. The Laguna Beach Police Department lists 911 as its emergency number, and its non-emergency line is (949) 497-0701. The Fire Department’s non-emergency line is (949) 497-0700.

City ambulances

The Laguna Beach Fire Department runs its own ambulance transport. Its Emergency Medical Services page lists two paramedic engine companies, two paramedic assessment engine companies and two ambulance transport units, all operating 24 hours a day, every day of the year, with more units added at expected peak times. The city sets transport fees by resolution, Resolution 26.026 as of October 2026. Questions about the ambulance program go to its coordinator at (949) 497-0700 ext. 460.

Mental health support

In a mental health emergency, the city says to call 911 or go to the nearest hospital emergency room. For needs such as a mental health crisis, a family dispute, substance use or a welfare check, the city lists Be Well Mobile Mental Health Services, a mobile team you request through the police non-emergency line at (949) 497-0701 ext. 2. The community resources page lists more local and county help, including the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.

Providence Mission Hospital Laguna Beach

• Address: 31872 Coast Highway, Laguna Beach, CA 92651
• Main phone: 949-499-1311
• Emergency Department: 949-499-7193. The department is on the second floor.

Providence’s site says the emergency room is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, with a triage nurse who assesses you on arrival. It describes the hospital as a certified Paramedic Receiving Center and says patients who need a higher level of care are transferred to Providence Mission Hospital in Mission Viejo. Its page lists overdose, major injuries, sudden chest pain, trouble breathing and uncontrolled bleeding as reasons to call 911 or go to an emergency room.

Beyond emergency care, Providence’s Laguna Beach page lists mental health and wellness, neuroscience and spine, orthopedic services, radiology and imaging, surgery and a wound care center. Check the page for current departments before you plan a visit.

The city’s Coastal Route trolley serves South Laguna and Mission Hospital, as getting around explains.

What is changing at the hospital

This section reports what the city and Providence had published as of October 2026. Read their pages for updates.

The City of Laguna Beach’s Hospital Task Force page says Providence, the owner and operator, has shared that it does not intend to meet a 2030 deadline to upgrade the hospital to seismic safety standards and is in the early stages of evaluating a future model. In Providence’s words, quoted by the city, that model would turn the campus into an outpatient-focused medical center with an Advanced Care Center. The city says the current hospital is not designated for trauma, stroke or heart attack patients, and that city ambulances can be diverted en route to another regional hospital, such as Mission Hospital in Mission Viejo or Hoag in Newport Beach, in those cases. It adds that state law allows ambulances to take patients only to a licensed acute care hospital, and that about 60 percent of Laguna Beach Fire Department ambulance transports go to the Laguna Beach hospital.

In a joint statement dated September 3, 2026, the city said it sees a smaller hospital with an emergency department and a minimal number of acute care beds as the surest way to keep emergency care that accepts ambulances, and Providence committed to an internal evaluation of that model. The statement says the evaluation does not commit Providence to the option. The two also agreed to sponsor 2027 legislation to permit a standalone emergency department in Laguna Beach, which the statement says state law does not currently allow. As of October 2026, the city’s task force page says Providence agreed in August to consider studying a micro-hospital and that its response is expected in November 2026.

The Hospital Task Force lists a meeting on November 19, 2026, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. in the City Council Chambers. The city’s page has a sign-up for task force updates.

Other hospitals

The city’s task force page names two regional hospitals that city ambulances can be diverted to when a patient needs a higher level of care:

• Providence Mission Hospital, Mission Viejo
• Hoag, Newport Beach

Providence’s own page says it transfers Laguna Beach patients who need a higher level of care to Mission Viejo.

Urgent care and non-emergency care

Providence’s emergency care page says that for non-life-threatening problems you can go to an urgent care center or your primary care doctor. It lists colds, minor cuts, rashes and sprains as examples.

This page does not list individual urgent care clinics. To find one, search your insurer’s provider directory and call the clinic before you go.

The city’s task force page notes that Providence’s Rancho Mission Viejo Health Center, which task force members toured in October 2026, offers urgent care, primary and specialty care, X-rays, diagnostics and CT scans, and has no emergency services. It is not in Laguna Beach.

Poison control

The California Poison Control System answers at 1-800-222-1222 at any hour, every day of the year. The service is free and confidential, and it offers interpretation in more than 200 languages. Its site says to call 911 instead if the person is unconscious, has trouble breathing, is having a seizure or has collapsed.

For alerts, evacuation zones and wildfire rules, see emergency alerts and wildfire.