That St. Mary’s Sacred Heart Hospital’s labor and delivery unit in Lavonia, Georgia, is about to close is clear to anyone who walks its halls. A message on the unit’s break-room whiteboard tells employees they can take home the holiday decorations that were long used in the office. Other items, like a coffee maker and air fryer, are up for grabs too.
St. Mary’s Health Care System’s management told employees in September that it would consolidate its labor and delivery services in Athens, Georgia, which is nearly an hour from Lavonia. It cited the “changing demographics” in the region and difficulty recruiting physicians to Lavonia, a rural town located in northeast Georgia in a red district. The health care system said that “recent Congressional cuts to Medicaid solidified this decision.”
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