Sandusky, Ohio-based Firelands Regional Medical Center is closing its award-winning open heart surgery program after 23 years, the Sandusky Register reported Nov. 15.
The program is set to close by the end of the year. A lack of patients and sinking reimbursements are some of the reasons for the closure, according to the report.
"Circumstances beyond our control, including the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and other macro-level changes, have driven this decision," hospital spokesman Jordan Sternberg wrote in an email to the Register.
Leadership shared the news with staff in a letter on Nov. 11.
"Firelands has entered into patient transfer and transport agreements with University Hospitals Health System and Metro Health, respectively," Robert Moore, Firelands' executive vice president of legal services and general counsel, wrote in a letter to staff. "We will have more to share with you in the next few weeks concerning the transition of the Firelands heart program."