St. Luke's: Four patients had to be re-routed to other hospitals due to protests

BOISE, Idaho (CBS2) — St. Luke's main hospital in downtown Boise on Tuesday went into an hour-long lockdown due to a crowd of protesters outside the facility.

On Wednesday, officials with the health system say four patients who were scheduled to be transported to the hospital, had to be moved elsewhere by ambulance during the lockdown.

"The lockdown forced St. Luke’s to temporarily pause emergency department services, and impacted Emergency Medical Services (EMS), redirecting ambulances to other Treasure Valley providers and sites," the hospital said.

Patients and visitors who were already inside the main building were asked to stay inside until the lockdown was lifted.

The group of protesters, led by well-known activist and gubernatorial candidate Ammon Bundy, were protesting what they call was a "medical kidnapping" of a child. Meridian Police says officers had to intervene to get the child needed care.

"While St. Luke’s recognizes and appreciates the recent questions and many expressions of concern that have been shared, we are unable to provide any additional information related to this security incident," the hospital said.