Several hospitals in Texas have filed for bankruptcy or closed since the start of 2022.
Texas has lost more than 20 hospitals since 2005, according to the Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research.
Six recent Texas hospital bankruptcies or closures:
1. Lion Star LLC, the group that operates Nacogdoches Memorial Hospital, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the Northern District of Texas in November. The filing outlines that the hospital owes as much as $50 million to creditors. At least 200 creditors have claims against Lion Star, and the largest 20 credit claims total more than $8 million.
2. St. Mark's Medical Center in La Grange, Texas will shutter Oct. 12 after unsuccessful efforts to satisfy its financial obligations. The hospital has been paying less than its full mortgage since 2020, but can no longer sustain its $13 million of mortgage debt as revenue sinks and prices rise. The facility cut nearly half its staff and various services in January.
3. The Hospital at Westlake Medical Center, a physician-owned hospital in Westlake Hills, Texas, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in September. The hospital had significant debt before the COVID-19 pandemic, which exacerbated the situation. The hospital also said that it has been burdened by high labor and supply inflation. Operations will continue during the bankruptcy proceedings.
4. Trinity Regional Hospital Sachse (Texas) filed for bankruptcy at the end of August. The 32-bed hospital opened two years ago and since has defaulted on around $70 million of municipal bonds that were issued in 2020. The hospital's owner listed assets of $50 million to $100 million and liabilities of $100 million to $500 million on the bankruptcy petition. The facility is looking to find a buyer.
5. San Antonio-based Texas Vista Medical Center, part of Dallas-based Steward Health Care, closed in May. The hospital was already struggling financially when Steward acquired it in 2017, and the COVID-19 pandemic led to more significant losses.
6. Cleveland (Texas) Emergency Hospital closed following the consolidation of emergency, surgical and general hospital services to Texas Emergency Hospital, also in Cleveland, in April 2022, according to Bluebonnet News. The consolidated facility is part of Cleveland, Texas-based Emergency Hospitals Systems.