EAU CLAIRE, Wis. — Hospital Sisters Health System (HSHS) will close HSHS Sacred Heart Hospital in Eau Claire and HSHS St. Joseph’s Hospital in Chippewa Falls.

Prevea Health said it will also close all of its locations in Chippewa Valley. 

HSHS said the decision to close these locations directly resulted from “prolonged operational and financial stress related to lingering impacts of the pandemic, inflation, workforce constraints, local market challenges and other industry-wide trends.”

HSHS and Prevea locations outside of those regions are not affected and will continue operating as usual.

HSHS and Prevea said they are working to transition patients to other providers. Most closures are expected to be complete on or before April 21, 2024. Prevea residency clinics will close on or before June 30, 2024.

“While HSHS and Prevea intended to create an integrated health delivery model in Western Wisconsin in 2015, our operations in the region have struggled for the past several years due to a mismatch in the supply of and demand for local health care services,” said Damond Boatwright, president and CEO of HSHS. “We closely considered all other options and sought strategic alternatives. After an agreement with a suitable partner did not work out, it was determined that exiting the market is the only feasible path forward.”

From 2010 to 2021, 136 rural hospitals closed around the U.S., according to the American Hospital Association. In 2020, the nation saw a record 19 closures.

The Center for Healthcare Quality and Payment Reform reported that more than 600 rural hospitals in the country are at risk of closing “because they do not have adequate revenue to cover the cost of the care provided.” That’s 30% of all rural hospitals in the country.

“We are saddened by this outcome and recognize it will have an impact for our patients in these communities in the Chippewa Valley,” said Dr. Ashok Rai, president and CEO of Prevea. “Together with HSHS, we are focused on ensuring continuity of care for patients as well as helping them transition their care to other area hospitals and providers.”

The closures will impact about 1,082 HSHS and 325 Prevea colleagues and physicians. HSHS said it will provide “support services and career transition assistance, including the potential to seek positions elsewhere in the organizations, if available.”

“We made this decision with a heavy heart as HSHS Sacred Heart and HSHS St. Joseph’s have been treasured ministries of the Hospital Sisters for more than 140 years,” said Boatwright. “We extend our deepest gratitude to our colleagues, physicians and volunteers for their countless contributions—all of which have shaped the Hospital Sisters’ healing legacy. The mission behind that legacy will guide and sustain us as we move forward.”