‘Transition is the only option’: Oregon hospital to shift obstetrics and birthing services

Ashland Community Hospital’s childbirth and inpatient services will be consolidated to Asante’s Medford medical center.

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Another Oregon health care organization is making cuts.

The brick-and-mortar Ashland Community Hospital will shutter in 2026, Asante revealed on Wednesday. The Medford-based medical care provider announced that the facility will continue operating through the year before transitioning into a “satellite campus” of the nearby Rogue Regional Medical Center in the spring.

In a statement, Asante President and CEO Tom Gessel said the “transition is the only option” as health care entities across the U.S. — and specifically in Oregon — continue to struggle. He noted that the Ashland Community Hospital has “lost millions of dollars” over the past year, as the facility simultaneously recorded a significant decrease in birth rates and inpatient admissions.

According to Asante, 37 Ashland residents have given birth in the hospital so far in 2025. Meanwhile, the organization reported that the demand for outpatient services and emergency department visits has risen.

“Legislation implemented in Salem has put hospitals in an untenable situation,” Gessel added in a statement, in part. “This will only worsen with the future reductions to Medicaid funding. For smaller communities like ours, consolidating duplicative services are inevitable — especially those in such close proximity. What this means for the Ashland campus is to maintain emergency and outpatient services being used most by residents, while consolidating services that are underutilized.”

The Asante announcement comes days after Portland’s Vibra Specialty Hospital announced it will cease operations around Feb. 1, 2026. The closure will impact 310 employees.

The Oregon Nurses Association has condemned both organizations’ decisions to cut back, arguing that workers and patients deserve “long-term investments” in medical care.

“These closures represent a devastating loss of critical healthcare access for Oregonians, forcing patients to travel farther for care, increasing risks in emergencies, and placing additional strain on an already overburdened health system,” ONA said in a release.

Providence Seaside Hospital also stopped offering labor and delivery services earlier in October of this year.