Capitol Building St Paul Minnesota
(St. Paul, MN) — A bill in the Minnesota House would strengthen requirements and increase transparency for large healthcare organizations ending services at local hospitals.
Fosston City Administrator Cassie Heide says current law requires a 120-day notice and public hearing before curtailing or moving health care services.
She told a House committee, “What makes this revised bill so important is seeing what Essentia was allowed to do in Fosston with little to no repercussions or accountability to the communities they serve. Essentia Health’s mandated hearing under the current bill was held via Teams 606 days after babies stopped being delivered in Fosston.”
Several healthcare organizations have recently closed labor and delivery or mental health units at hospitals in greater Minnesota, such as Lake Region Healthcare’s closure of the Bridgeway Inpatient Behavioral Health Unit in Fergus Falls.