After years of financial struggles, two Arizona hospitals are abruptly shutting down.
Gilbert Hospital, near Power and Ray roads, will officially close Saturday, June 16 at 1 p.m.
Florence Hospital at Anthem, on Hunt Highway, will close Monday, June 18 at 8 a.m., according to a court-appointed receiver.
As of Friday evening, both hospitals were still treating patients, but they've asked ambulances to stop bringing new patients to the emergency department.
Patients told ABC15 they liked the convenience of the neighborhood hospitals, which had a guarantee of "door to doc in 31 minutes."
"I've been going there for several years when I needed to, so I hate to see it go," former patient John Reagan said.
The hospitals faced financial difficulties for years and were unable to secure new investors or owners in recent months. Creditors forced Chapter 11 bankruptcy, and a court-appointed receiver filed a notice of wind down of operations Friday.
"We are doing everything we can on the ground here and in Florence to ensure that the patients in care are still receiving top care," said Alex Stevenson, a spokesman for the receiver.
Employees were called to a meeting about the closure Friday morning. They are also trying to find solutions for patients who had upcoming appointments. Closing a hospital can be hard on a community.
"My dad's actually a heart patient, and we live in that neighborhood right behind the hospital," said Gilbert resident Victoria Lovvorn. "So that's part of the reason we moved there, so if something were to happen, we would have accessibility to something."
The receiver is still making arrangements to ensure former patients will have access to their medical records.
