I think there's an easy answer to this guys. I think that NPCs will fill this void. If your hospital is absolutely filled to the brim with patients, I'm guessing that you'll be able to put out beacons for other hospitals, or cutlass reds. If those aren't answered by players after a certain amount of time, NPCs will start being generated to take those players away from your ships.
Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if transporting ships ends up being a job on the "what does a healed player do" side of things. Set a beacon for a ship to be delivered! I'd expect to see some kind of ship for that other than the kraken/hull c show up eventually. Something Crucible sized with very little life support and poor armament. If not, people transport is a confirmed career. Maybe a Connie shows up and picks you up to make some more money on top of a transport run.
I'm guessing we'll see some hand wavium... But less than we think.