Calais (Maine) Regional Hospital will suspend its infusion services department, dubbed the Rose Room, effective May 1.
The hospital said in an April 10 website announcement the program is currently financially unsustainable.
"Rose Room services had to be reduced last year for some of the more expensive medication services," the hospital said. "Infusion medications can be extremely expensive and range from a few hundred dollars to more than $14,000. Not to mention the overhead costs, supplies and staffing expenses. With extremely low cash on hand, there is no room to shuffle the costs around while waiting for reimbursement for services."
The hospital said it is notifying referring providers and affected patients of the decision, in addition to helping patients with transition of treatment. The Rose Room saw an average of 1.4 patients per day over the last two quarters. CRH officials plan to consider reinstating the program this fall.
"As responsible stewards of the hospital, leadership has undertaken numerous efforts to lower operating costs," the hospital said. "Those efforts include decreasing temporary staff utilization, reducing management, adjusting and eliminating service lines, decreasing supply costs by maximizing group purchasing opportunities and improved billing and collection processes. But these measures are not enough to offset the continued decline in the community's use of our available services."
The news comes after the hospital last May revealed plans to close its obstetrics department, partially due to a decline in deliveries.
To read the hospital's full announcement, click here.
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