The Quiet Crisis in Healthcare — And the Wound Care Partner Prepared for It

The Reality: Hospitals are Closing

Across the country, hospitals and emergency departments are shutting down — gradually in some regions, abruptly in others. The causes vary, but common threads include compliance challenges, underinvestment, and fragmented leadership — all of which can push even longstanding institutions into operational crisis.

Recent reports from large urban centers show entire inpatient units shuttering. These closures aren’t theoretical — they’re current, ongoing, and affecting hospitals today, this week, and this year.

Funding pulled. Emergency meetings with public health officials. Patients displaced.

This isn’t a one-off. It’s a pattern. And it’s accelerating.

So far in 2025, 19 hospitals and EDs have either shut down or suspended key services:

Valley Community Hospital (Pauls Valley, OK) — Closed Jan. 8, 2025, after ongoing operational struggles ended the facility’s brief return since reopening in 2021.¹

Ascension St. Elizabeth Hospital (Chicago, IL) — Closed February 2025 prior to its acquisition by Prime Healthcare.²

Homer G. Phillips Memorial Hospital (St. Louis, MO) — Closed March 17, 2025, after its board voluntarily relinquished the facility’s hospital license.³

East Ohio Regional Hospital (Martins Ferry, OH) — Closed March 20, 2025; later acquired by 360 Healthcare with plans to reopen in fall 2025.⁴

Mount Sinai Beth Israel Hospital (New York, NY) — Closed April 9, 2025, following prolonged legal disputes with community advocates attempting to keep it open.⁵

United Medical Center (Washington, DC) — Closed April 15, 2025, coinciding with the opening of Cedar Hill Regional Medical Center; nearly 500 employees were laid off.⁶

Rockledge Hospital (Rockledge, FL) — Closed April 22, 2025, along with four hospital-based outpatient departments, under Orlando Health’s restructuring plan.⁷

Christus Santa Rosa Hospital–Medical Center (San Antonio, TX) — Closed April 25, 2025, consolidating services into nearby Christus Health facilities.⁸

Mid Coast Medical Center Trinity (Trinity, TX) — Closed April 25, 2025, after months of unsuccessful efforts to secure financial stability.⁹

Taylor Hospital (Ridley Park, PA) — Closed April 26, 2025, as part of Crozer Health’s downsizing, affecting more than 2,600 employees.¹⁰

Crozer-Chester Medical Center (Upland, PA) — Closed May 2, 2025, amid system-wide service reductions.¹¹

Lawrence Medical Center – Emergency Department (Moulton, AL) — Closed May 23, 2025, ending ED services permanently.¹²

Northern Light Inland Hospital (Waterville, ME) — Closed May 27, 2025, along with affiliated services and clinics as part of system consolidation.¹³

Stilwell Memorial Hospital (Stilwell, OK) — Closed June 27, 2025, with its affiliated clinic scheduled to follow 30 days later.¹⁴

Heritage Valley Kennedy Hospital (Kennedy Township, PA) — Closed June 30, 2025, due to reduced reimbursements and declining patient volumes.¹⁵

Javon Bea Hospital–Rockton (Rockford, IL) — Closed July 1, 2025, after Mercyhealth initiated a temporary suspension of services with state health authorities.¹⁶

St. Luke’s Des Peres Hospital (St. Louis, MO) — Closed Aug. 1, 2025, citing low utilization and financial pressures.¹⁷

Weiss Memorial Hospital (Chicago, IL) — Closed Aug. 8, 2025, after CMS ended Medicare participation over compliance violations, leaving the facility financially unsustainable.¹⁸

West Suburban Medical Center (Oak Park, IL) — Closed Aug. 8, 2025, after CMS funding threats, a rejected $10M state loan, and unresolved compliance and financial challenges left leadership unable to assure long-term viability or job stability.¹⁹

Additionally, 38 rural hospitals, including 14 critical access hospitals, have ceased operations since 2020 and the end of 2024.²⁰

Some closures were due to low utilization. Others were linked to reimbursement changes, staffing shortfalls, or system-wide reorganizations.

These stories vary, but the trend is clear: hospitals are under pressure — and some are not able to adapt quickly enough.

Urban vs. Rural: Two Versions of Collapse

Today’s hospitals face rising operational costs, post-COVID care models, staffing instability, shifting reimbursement rules, and tighter prior authorization processes — but they’re still expected to function with systems that haven’t meaningfully changed in over a decade.

Yet many internal systems — from documentation and compliance to service line strategy — are still operating with a pre-2020 mindset.

While the root causes may differ, the outcomes are strikingly similar.

• Urban Hospitals face:

  • CMS contract terminations due to repeat compliance violations

  • Overwhelming patient loads without adequate safety protocols

  • Budget-driven care models that prioritize volume over value

    
    

• Rural Hospitals face:

  • Chronic underinvestment in staff, tech, and infrastructure

  • Loss of key service lines, creating referral and revenue deserts

  • Leadership churn and lack of sustainable growth plans

    
    

The healthcare system isn’t collapsing because no one cares — it’s collapsing because everything changed, and bureaucracy didn’t. Even well-run hospitals with capable teams are overwhelmed — not by effort, but by infrastructure that no longer fits. Yes, COVID reshaped care delivery. Yes, reimbursement rules have shifted. Yes, operating costs exploded. But most hospital systems are trying to solve 2025 problems with 2015 workflows.

This isn’t a crisis of effort — it’s a crisis of design.

The Real Cost of Noncompliance

COVID didn’t just stress the system — it exposed every weak point in how hospitals operate: understaffed units, outdated documentation, inflexible service lines, and rising labor costs without reimbursement to match. But perhaps most critically, it laid bare widespread vulnerabilities in regulatory compliance — from documentation and coding to billing and audit readiness.

And regulators aren’t waiting anymore.

CMS and accrediting bodies are tightening their grip — and when compliance slips, the fallout is swift:

• Terminated reimbursement

• Funding loss

• Reputational damage

• Patient leakage

• Lawsuits and liability exposure

• A breakdown in continuity of care

• A race to recover that many hospitals can’t win

  
  

Whether the root cause is staffing shortages, documentation gaps, inspection failures, or aging infrastructure, the outcome is the same: unsustainable patient volumes, fractured referral patterns, and leadership teams scrambling to stretch every dollar — often by cutting corners or pushing already-overburdened staff beyond their limits.

Hospitals need more than staffing fixes, infrastructure upgrades, or stable referral sources — and certainly more than a mega marketing firm promising a rebrand. They need well-structured, audit-ready service lines that meet regulatory standards, generate sustainable revenue, and hold firm when the pressure is highest.

A System Under Pressure — And Solutions Built for This Reality

Hospitals aren’t failing because no one’s trying — and they don’t fail in a vacuum. They’re failing because the systems they rely on weren’t built for this moment. Too many are still expected to solve today’s challenges with yesterday’s playbook.

At Shared Health Services, we’ve supported hospital- and physician-based wound care and hyperbaric medicine programs for over 25 years. We’ve lived through healthcare’s biggest transitions. We were in the trenches during COVID — and we didn’t just adapt. We rewrote the playbook.

While others patch together quick fixes, we’ve built a flexible, forward-looking system that helps our partners stay steady through change. That includes:

• Revenue-generating wound care programs designed for audit-readiness and clinical excellence

• Documentation systems that reflect current and future effective CMS rules and payer expectations

• Peer-to-peer guidance from clinicians and business professionals who understand real-world operations, supported by clear policies and real-time performance insights

Our systems were forged in fire and built for durability.

Our role is to work upstream — helping our hospital and physician practice partners build smart, compliant, revenue-resilient wound care programs before problems spiral. 

Final Word: Collapse Is Optional

Hospitals are not failing because people aren’t working hard enough. They’re struggling because they’re being asked to meet modern challenges with outdated tools.

We believe hospitals can still thrive — especially when they focus on durable service lines, like wound care and HBOT, that serve high-need patients, generate stable revenue, and reinforce care continuity.

There’s no one-size-fits-all solution. That’s why our model is built to relieve pressure — not add to it.

Shared Health Services is more than a consultant — we offer the support, structure, and experience that today’s healthcare realities demand.

We’re the safety net built from 25+ years of quiet excellence — simplifying workflows, supporting compliant documentation, and acting as a readily accessible partner your team can count on.

We’re not here to catch you after the fall.

We’re here so you don’t have to fall at all.

References:

1. From. PV again loses local hospital. Pauls Valley Democrat. Published January 8, 2025. Accessed August 13, 2025. https://www.paulsvalleydailydemocrat.com/news/local_news/pv-again-loses-local-hospital/article_a58711a4-ce0d-11ef-b765-ff828ab32482.html

   
   

2. Voyles R. Review board approves closure of Ascension Saint Elizabeth in Chicago. Health News Illinois. Published January 24, 2025. Accessed August 13, 2025. https://healthnewsillinois.com/2025/01/24/review-board-approves-closure-of-ascension-saint-elizabeth-in-chicago/

   
   

3. Henderson AY. Homer G. Phillips Hospital is permanently closed after operators surrender its license. St. Louis Public Radio. Published March 18, 2025. Accessed August 13, 2025. https://www.stlpr.org/news-briefs/2025-03-18/homer-g-phillips-hospital-permanently-closed

   
   

4. WTOV9.com. East Ohio Regional Hospital closing. WTOV. Published March 20, 2025. Accessed August 13, 2025. https://wtov9.com/news/local/breaking-east-ohio-regional-hospital-closing

   
   

5. WATCH: Mount Sinai Beth Israel removes signs following closure. My News 13. Published April 9, 2025. Accessed August 13, 2025. https://mynews13.com/fl/orlando/news/2025/04/09/mount-sinai-beth-israel-closed

   
   

6. Spencer D. “Bittersweet”: United Medical Center in SE DC shutting down after 6 decades. NBC4 Washington. Published April 4, 2025. Accessed August 13, 2025. https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/health/united-medical-center-southeast-dc-cedar-hill/3884477/

   
   

7. Berman D. Disappointed, saddened community marks death of Rockledge Hospital at age 84. Florida Today. Published April 20, 2025. Accessed August 13, 2025. https://www.floridatoday.com/story/news/local/2025/04/20/staff-community-mark-last-days-of-rockledge-hospital-with-sadness/83099233007/

   
   

8. Lambert M. CHRISTUS Santa Rosa Hospital – Medical Center to close in April. KSAT. Published February 24, 2025. Accessed August 13, 2025. https://www.ksat.com/news/local/2025/02/24/christus-santa-rosa-hospital-medical-center-to-close-in-april/

   
   

9. Garcia M. Trinity’s only hospital announces closure citing financial problems. KETK. Published April 19, 2025. Accessed August 13, 2025. https://www.ketk.com/news/local-news/trinitys-only-hospital-announces-closure-citing-financial-problems/

   
   

10. Staff N. Community voices concerns over Crozer closures as Delco looks to cover health gaps. NBC10 Philadelphia. Published April 25, 2025. Accessed August 13, 2025. https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/health/crozer-taylor-hospitals-closures-community-meeting/4168926/

    
    

11. Staff N. Community voices concerns over Crozer closures as Delco looks to cover health gaps. NBC10 Philadelphia. Published April 25, 2025. Accessed August 13, 2025. https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/health/crozer-taylor-hospitals-closures-community-meeting/4168926/

    
    

12. Norum K. Lawrence County Medical Center announces official date for ER closure. WAFF. Published April 29, 2025. Accessed August 13, 2025. https://www.waff.com/2025/04/29/lawrence-county-medical-center-announces-official-date-er-closure/

    
    

13. Wight P. After more than 80 years, Waterville hospital permanently closes. Maine Public. Published May 27, 2025. Accessed August 13, 2025. https://www.mainepublic.org/health/2025-05-27/after-more-than-80-years-waterville-hospital-permanently-closes

    
    

14. Stockett R. Stilwell hospital and clinic to close, leaving residents shocked, concerned. KTUL. Published June 21, 2025. Accessed August 13, 2025. https://ktul.com/news/local/stilwell-hospital-and-clinic-to-close-leaving-residents-shocked-concerned-closure-stilwell-memorial-hospital-cherokee-nation-principal-chief-chuck-hoskin-jr-rural-hospital-patients-staff

    
    

15. Adele C. Heritage Valley Health System’s Kennedy Hospital permanently closing. CBS News Pittsburgh. Published June 30, 2025. Accessed August 13, 2025. https://www.cbsnews.com/pittsburgh/news/heritage-valley-kennedy-hospital-closing-today/

    
    

16. 13 WREX Newsroom. “We’re Being Forgotten”: Mercyhealth closes Rockton Ave Hospital. 13 WREX. Published June 30, 2025. Accessed August 13, 2025. https://www.wrex.com/news/mercyhealth-closes-javon-bea-hospital-rockton-until-further-notice/article_fc6d64f4-dc33-4789-88f5-f627756eecb5.html

    
    

17. Southwick R. Hospital in St. Louis area will close due to “increasing financial pressures.” Chief Healthcare Executive. Published June 25, 2025. Accessed August 13, 2025. https://www.chiefhealthcareexecutive.com/view/hospital-in-st-louis-area-will-close-amid-increasing-financial-pressures-

    
    

18. Hrush C. Weiss Hospital owner defends actions amid closure, criticism of his tenure: “We’ve had to fight and figure it out.” Block Club Chicago. Published August 10, 2025. Accessed August 13, 2025. https://blockclubchicago.org/2025/08/10/weiss-hospital-owner-defends-actions-amid-closure-criticism-of-his-tenure-weve-had-to-fight-and-figure-it-out/

    
    

19. Haley D. West Sub in financial crisis, says owner on same day Weiss is closed. Wednesday Journal. Published August 8, 2025. Accessed August 13, 2025. https://www.oakpark.com/2025/08/08/west-sub-financial-crisis-weiss-closed/

    
    

20. Lewis-Bevan S, Powell S. What might the past suggest about rural emergency services amidst critical access hospitals’ decline? AMA J Ethics. 2025;27(7):530-536. doi: https://doi.org/10.1001/amajethics.2025.530.