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 11 department closures or services that are ending or have been announced, advanced or finalized that Becker’s reported since March 18:
1. Madelia (Minn.) Health will close its only pharmacy May 28 due to rising costs.
2. Renton, Wash.-based Valley Medical Center said on May 12 it will make service consolidations and other changes to 50% of its workforce over the next two months due to financial challenges, state and federal government uncertainties, and private sector reimbursement.
3. Boise, Idaho-based St. Luke’s Health System will temporarily close the urologic oncology clinic at the St. Luke’s Cancer Institute. The closure will go into effect May 30 and is related to the departure of one of the clinic’s physicians. The health system began recruitment efforts for a urologic oncologist once they learned of the physician’s intended departure but has yet to fill the position.
4. Lawrence Medical Center in Moulton, Ala., will permanently close its emergency department on May 23. The ED closure comes amid a broader plan to transition the hospital into an outpatient facility under a 40-year lease agreement with Huntsville (Ala.) Hospital Health System.
5. Ontario, Calif.-based Prime Healthcare temporarily suspended pediatric inpatient services at its Joliet, Ill.-based St. Joseph Medical Center starting April 25 after averaging less than one patient daily at the unit. The suspension is reversible, pending future demand.
6. Burlington, Kan.-based Coffey County Hospital will end obstetrics services on June 30 due to declining numbers.
7. The University of Maryland Upper Chesapeake Medical Center Bel Air’s single licensed pediatric inpatient bed will close on or about June 1. Elizabeth Wise, MSN, the system’s president and CEO said many days see no pediatric inpatients. The Bel Air facility will continue to provide pediatric care in the emergency department.
8. Houlton (Maine) Regional Hospital closed its inpatient labor and delivery unit on May 2. The hospital said it has seen its labor and delivery unit volume steadily decline over several years.
9. Harrison County Hospital in Corydon, Ind., suspended obstetric services due to a lack of obstetric providers, effective March 31.
10. Bar Harbor, Maine-based Mount Desert Island Hospital will close its labor and delivery unit July 1 due to a “dramatic decline in births.” The hospital saw only 33 babies born in 2024 and nine to date in 2025. A decade ago, the hospital averaged around 100 deliveries annually.
11. Excelsior Springs (Mo.) Hospital closed its home health and hospice services on April 30. Hospital CEO Kristen DeHart attributed the decision to stagnant insurance reimbursements, higher operational costs and unpredictable denials from insurers.
