A number of healthcare organizations have recently closed medical departments or ended services at facilities to shore up finances, focus on more in-demand services or address staffing shortages.
Here are 40 department closures or services that are ending or have been announced, advanced or finalized that Becker’s reported since July 1:
1. Linton, Ind.-based Greene County General Hospital will end obstetric services effective Jan. 31, 2026 as part of a strategic transition in response to long-term challenges facing rural hospitals nationwide — including rising costs, underpayment from payers and a steady decline in local birth volume.
2. Ashland (Ore.) Community Hospital, part of Medford, Ore.-based Asante Health, will transition to a satellite campus by spring 2026, ending its inpatient and obstetrics services. The 24/7 emergency department and outpatient services, including surgery, laboratory and imaging, will continue operating at Ashland Community Hospital.
3. Marshall, Mo.-based Fitzgibbon Hospital plans to close two primary care clinics, an inpatient behavioral health unit and Fitzgibbon Home Health and Hospice services, effective Dec. 31, in an effort to save more than $2 million annually.
4. Peoria, Ill.-based OSF HealthCare’s certificate of need application received approval on Nov. 18 from the Illinois Health Facilities and Services Review Board on to consolidate Ottawa, Ill.-based OSF Saint Elizabeth Medical Center’s inpatient obstetrics and intensive care unit services with those at OSF Saint Elizabeth – Peru. The consolidation plan will centralize inpatient OB-GYN and ICU services to offer enhanced care to patients closer to home.
5. Louisville, Ky.-based UofL Health closed the ICU at its Shelbyville (Ky.) Hospital Nov. 10. The six-bed ICU opened in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a statement from the system. Usage had decreased since the pandemic, and the low occupancy rate of the unit did not “justify the ongoing expense to equip and maintain when that same intensive level of care is available at nearby hospitals.”
6. The Illinois Health Facilities and Services Review Board on Nov. 18 approved St. Louis-based Ascension’s plans to transition inpatient obstetrics services from Ascension Alexian Brothers in Elk Grove Village to Ascension St. Alexius Women and Children’s Hospital in Hoffman Estates. Ascension said Alexian Brothers will continue to grow its cardiology, stroke and spine programs and will maintain outpatient obstetric care and emergency deliveries.
7. Hartford-based Connecticut Children’s filed a certificate of need to close an inpatient unit operating at St. Mary’s Hospital in Waterbury, Conn. The pediatric system linked the decision to staffing shortages, low volumes in the unit, and financial challenges.
8. Greenville-based Regional Medical Center of Central Alabama said Nov. 13 it plans to end inpatient services and lay off around 90 employees across multiple departments in an effort to become a rural emergency hospital.
9. Lynchburg, Va.-based Centra Health plans to close the labor and delivery unit and OB-GYN surgical services at its Centra Southside Community Hospital, along with outpatient care at its CMG Southside Women’s Center, both in Farmville, Va., on Dec. 19. The decision comes amid a decline in patient volume and deliveries, with fewer than 275 in the last few years, making it difficult to recruit and retain providers and cover on-call gaps.
10. Minneapolis-based Allina Health consolidated labor and delivery services in southern Minnesota and closed the birth center at Faribault (Minn.) Medical Center Dec. 1. The move comes after Rochester, Minn.-based Mayo Clinic Health System notified Allina in September that it was ending on-call OB-GYN physician services at Allina’s Owatonna (Minn.) Hospital Nov. 17. Under a joint agreement, Allina operates the hospital and Mayo operates the clinic on the same campus. Allina said it will assume responsibility for on-call labor and delivery coverage and transition to a regional obstetric care model.
11. Ida Grove, Iowa-based Horn Memorial Hospital shared plans to discontinue its home health and hospice services, effective Dec. 12. The hospital began transferring existing patients to other area providers Nov. 3. The decision followed an evaluation of “operational challenges and the evolving healthcare landscape.”
12. Rutland (Vt.) Regional Medical Center said Oct. 29 it is closing its five licensed pediatric beds within the Women’s and Children’s Unit as part of a broader transition in service delivery. The community hospital plans to phase out its inpatient pediatric beds, citing a nationwide decline in the number of children requiring hospital stays longer than 24 hours. The hospital’s redesign will focus on outpatient and short-stay pediatric care.
13. Kettering (Ohio) Health said Oct. 20 it plans to end obstetric services at Beavercreek, Ohio-based Soin Medical Center and transition them to Kettering (Ohio) Health Main Campus and Kettering Health Washington Township in Dayton. The system pointed to national and regional trends of birthing rate declines as primary drivers of the consolidation.
14. Cleveland-based MetroHealth plans to close its psychiatric emergency department at the Cleveland Heights Medical Center by Dec. 31 and reassign 35 employees to other behavioral health services across the system. The decision follows a Cuyahoga County Council vote to allocate $7 million to The Centers, a community provider, for the development of a new behavioral health crisis center, according to the health system. County officials also plan to redirect $4 million in annual funding — previously awarded to MetroHealth — from the ADAMHS Board of Cuyahoga County to support operations at the new center.
15. Aspirus Iron River (Mich.) Hospital ended overnight emergency surgeries effective Oct. 26. The change comes after the hospital experienced a sharp decline in after-hours cases over the past three years. The hospital also plans to end labor and delivery services at its Ironwood (Mich.) Hospital and Clinics on Dec. 31 as part of a new service model for the facility.
16. Renton, Wash.-based Providence permanently closed four occupational medicine and workplace health services clinics in Portland, Ore., on Nov. 7, affecting 43 employees. In an internal message sent to staff that was obtained by Becker’s, Ben LeBlanc, MD, chief executive of Providence Medical Group-Oregon and Jennifer Zelensky, COO of Providence Medical Group-Oregon, said the clinics “have lost more than half of our occupational medicine clinicians, leading us to permanently or temporarily close four clinics.”
17. King of Prussia, Pa.-based Universal Health Services’ Southwest Healthcare Corona (Calif.) Regional Medical Center will close its maternity services (labor and delivery) on Jan. 30, 2026. The hospital pointed to a declining birth rate in the county over the past few years for its decision.
18. Powell (Wyo.) Valley Healthcare plans to end oncology services and close its internal medicine clinic in Cody within the next two to three months. Seven employees will be laid off as part of the oncology service closure, but infusion services will continue at the hospital. Powell Valley said the move is necessary to remain financially stable and continue offering its other services.
19. Brewer, Maine-based Northern Light Health plans to close its Waterville (Maine) walk-in clinic by the end of 2025. The closure will affect around 30 full- and part-time employees, and Northern Light is working with them to determine next steps. The clinic is managed by Northern Light Mercy Hospital in Portland.
20. Delta (Colo.) Health discontinued its obstetrics services Sept. 17 and partnered with Montrose (Colo.) Regional Health’s Alpine Women’s Centre and its Family Center to ensure its OB patients have a smooth care transition.
21. Platte County Hospital in Wheatland, Wyo., part of Phoenix-based Banner Health, paused inpatient labor and delivery services, effective Oct. 15. The hospital attributed the pause to various “industrywide challenges facing rural hospitals, including declining delivery volumes over several years and provider recruitment challenges.” Hospital administration also emphasized its commitment to recruiting full-time, qualified providers to rebuild a strong, high-quality obstetrical program.
22. Greenville, Texas-based Hunt Regional Healthcare closed its emergency departments in Commerce and Quinlan, both in Texas, on Sept. 30 due to financial losses.
23. Willows, Calif.-based Glenn Medical Center fast-tracked the closure of its emergency department due to staffing shortages. The ED closed on Sept. 30. The 25-bed hospital closed on Oct. 21 after CMS revoked its critical access designation.
24. Renton, Wash.-based Providence closed the pediatric intensive care unit at St. Vincent Medical Center in Portland, Ore., the first week of November. Hospital officials cited ongoing challenges, particularly a low patient census.
25. Athens, Ga.-based St. Mary’s Health Care System will end labor and delivery services at St. Mary’s Sacred Heart Hospital in Lavonia, Ga., and consolidate them with those at its St. Mary’s Hospital in Athens, due to continued “significant challenges” like Medicaid cuts and physician recruitment. St. Mary’s Medical Group will also end care at Lavonia-based Clear Creek OB-GYN. The transitions will occur in late October.
26. Buffalo, N.Y.-based Kaleida Health closed its Millard Fillmore Surgery Center in Williamsville, N.Y., on Oct. 1, laying off 32 employees. A spokesperson said the decision was based on several factors, including pending federal funding reductions, particularly in Medicaid reimbursement. Physicians at the surgery center will continue to perform cases at the health system’s hospitals and other outpatient surgery centers.
27. Rochester, Minn.-based Mayo Clinic Health System plans to close six clinics across southeastern Minnesota and transition care to other locations by Dec. 10. The health system cited staffing shortages and declining patient volumes.
28. Fisherville, Va.-based Augusta Medical Group on Sept. 4 shared plans to consolidate three care locations. The medical group is part of Fisherville-based Augusta Health. The health system pointed to its ongoing response to the recently passed One Big Beautiful Bill Act as part of the reason for the location consolidations.
29. UF Health Leesburg (Fla.) Hospital will end its labor and delivery services “later this fall” as part of broader alignment at the facility. The hospital is part of Gainesville, Fla.-based UF Health.
30. Phoenix-based Banner Health endedemergency services at its Loveland, Colo.-based Banner McKee Medical Center on Nov. 5 as the facility was converted to a specialty hospital.
31. Aurora Medical Center-Sheboygan County in Wisconsin stopped offering inpatient psychiatric care and converted those beds to medical and surgical beds on Sept. 19. Aurora Health Care attributed the decision to increased demand for medical and surgical inpatient beds and a decline in psychiatric patient volume.
32. Cleveland-based MetroHealth closed six outpatient offices on Oct. 3 to improve operational efficiency and stabilize its finances. The system said services offered at the affected sites will be consolidated to larger locations and enable it to expand services and hours of operation.
33. Sacramento-based Sutter Health closed its Jackson, Calif.-based Sutter Amador Surgery Center on Oct. 3. In an open letter to the community, the system said the outpatient surgery center closure will help “align resources with areas of growing need” in the community it serves.
34. Providence Seaside (Ore.) Hospital closed its inpatient obstetric and newborn care services on Oct. 4. Hospital leaders said the service closure comes at a time of “historic reset” for Oregon’s healthcare system, with hospitals across the state forced to deal with care costs outpacing reimbursement due to challenges like workforce shortages, rising supply costs and inflation.
35. Jackson South Medical Center, part of Jackson Health System, both in Miami, moved up the closure of its maternity unit to Aug. 15. The hospital originally planned to close the unit this fall, but the closure was accelerated due to ongoing staffing issues, including nurses transferring to other positions and frequent callouts.
36. Memorial Hospital Biloxi (Miss.) ended its obstetrics services and transferred them to Memorial Hospital Gulfport (Miss.) on Sept. 1. The hospitals are part of Memorial Hospital System in Gulfport. Obstetrics services being consolidated include labor and delivery, nursery and mother and baby.
37. Minneapolis-based Allina Health closed four clinics — three suburban medical clinics and one on Nicollet Mall in downtown Minneapolis — on Nov. 1. The system said there is underutilized space across the organization’s clinics, and the closures balance maintaining care access with greater efficiency of space and resources.
38. Kansas City, Mo.-based Research Medical Center, part of Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Healthcare’s HCA Midwest Health, closed its neonatal ICU and ended labor and delivery services on Sept. 8. A review found that the hospital has seen a more than 80% decrease in community use of both the NICU and labor and delivery services. Research Medical is reinvesting in areas that have seen an increased demand, including burn and organ transplant care, cardiology, emergency and trauma and neurosciences.
39. Thousand Oaks, Calif.-based Los Robles Regional Medical Center closed its pediatric unit July 1. Hospital officials attributed the 12-bed unit’s closure to a significant decrease in pediatric volume. They reported the unit averaged fewer than two patients per day.
40. McCook, Neb.-based Community Hospital shared plans to close its Curtis (Neb.) Medical Center — a rural health clinic — citing future Medicaid cuts.
