A sign for the Grant County Chamber of Commerce lines Highway 26 in John Day, Ore. on Jan. 23, 2025.
Antonio Sierra / OPB
Citing potential cuts to Medicaid, Grant County’s only hospital announced it was laying off nine staff members this week.
The Blue Mountain Hospital District attributed the cuts — a split between clinical and leadership positions — to declining use of services, the rising costs of supply and labor, and “potential cuts to Medicaid in the One Big Beautiful Bill.” It’s a big hit for one of the state’s most sparsely populated counties as federal cuts add uncertainty to the future of rural health care.
“While these decisions are never easy, these layoffs were made with immense care and respect for all our devoted team members who provide such critical care in this community,” the announcement released Wednesday stated. “Fortunately, we do not anticipate additional workforce reductions or restructuring of our leadership teams at this time.”
Hospital CEO Misty Robertson did not return a request for comment Friday.
The nonprofit district operates a 25-bed hospital in John Day, a 40-bed elder care center in Prairie City, two clinics and a hospice. About a third of Grant County’s residents are on Medicaid, according to the Oregon Office of Rural Health, and a little less than half are age 65 or older.
Strains on rural health care have been deepening this year as health systems prepare to lose Medicaid dollars. In other parts of Eastern Oregon, the Oregon Coast and the Willamette Valley, families are seeing reductions in maternal care and baby delivery units.
The news of John Day’s cuts reverberated quickly to U.S. Rep. Cliff Bentz, R-Ontario, who was asked about it at a telephone town hall Wednesday evening.
Bentz has repeatedly defended the GOP’s budget bill and touted the $50 billion earmarked for rural hospitals across the country. Oregon expects to receive a $100 million allocation, which represents around 4% of the anticipated cuts to the state’s Medicaid plan.
Bentz described the rural hospital money as a way to prepare for tougher times.
“The good news is that we have that $50 billion available,” he said. “The challenging news is we’re going to have to figure out how to come up with good ideas to use that money over the next five years to be ready for a more challenged space.”
While the Blue Mountain Hospital District doesn’t expect more layoffs, it did say that more changes could be coming. Without going into detail, the announcement states that the district could introduce “new models of care” and use more technology to assist them.
