Big South Fork Medical Center in Oneida, Tenn., stopped accepting ambulances over the weekend and is only accepting walk-ins, according to TV station WVLT.
The ambulance diversion is the latest in a string of issues at Big South Fork Medical Center in recent months. The 25-bed hospital, owned by West Palm Beach, Fla-based Rennova Health, has been plagued by payroll problems and owes more than $85,000 in back taxes, according to the report. A former lab manager at the hospital recently told 10News that he quit because the facility regularly ran low on basic supplies and critical lab tests.
Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., is seeking answers from Rennova about the situation at Big South Fork Medical Center.
"The diversion of EMS patients from Big South Fork hospital is deeply concerning," she told WVLT. "People who need care the most are not receiving it. This is the latest in a string of troubling news related to Rennova hospitals, and East Tennesseans deserve answers."