The lease for ETMC Trinity expires Aug. 1. ETMC notified the Trinity Memorial Hospital District in February 2015 of its plans to exit ETMC Trinity when the lease ended, ETMC said in a news release.
ETMC attributed its decision, in part, to low patient utilization and reduced reimbursements from various payers such as Medicare and Medicaid.
“The decision to not extend or renew our lease of ETMC Trinity was an extremely difficult one,” Perry Henderson, ETMC senior vice president for affiliate operations, said. “ETMC has leased this hospital for 20 years, so this decision is one we struggled with and did not make lightly. However, the reality of the situation is that due to changes in healthcare and low patient volumes at this facility, we can no longer afford to operate a hospital in this community.”
ETMC added it is “saddened to leave Trinity,” and has worked with the Trinity Hospital Board since 2015 “to help position them for continued operations with a potential new partner.”
ETMC’s exit from ETMC Trinity will affect approximately 60 employees. The health system said it will help assist affected employees as they look for other jobs with ETMC or at other facilities.
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