FRESNO, Calif. – Madera Community Hospital is one of 16 facilities awarded a total of $300 million in loans on Monday by the state’s Department of Health Care Access and Information.
The funds come from a Distressed Hospital Loan Program that was created last year by legislators to provide urgent funding to struggling hospitals. Other facilities in the region that received loans include Kaweah Delta Health Care District in Visalia, Ridgecrest Regional Hospital in Kern County, and John C. Fremont Healthcare District in Mariposa.
Madera Community Hospital received the largest share, at $57 million. The loan was first announced last summer, butthe facility needed a concrete reopening plan in order to gain final approval.
The hospital is now many months into a plan to reopen under ownership by Modesto-based American Advanced Management. Company officials say the facility could open its doors as early as this summer.
The details of reopening are the subject of two hearings in bankruptcy court in the next week.
On Thursday, a federal judge will hear arguments from AAM and the hospital’s creditors to dismiss objections to the plan raised last month by a Madera non-profit.
On April 16, the judge will review a formal restructuring plan for the hospital. If approved, it will set in motion a process for releasing funds for the hospital and its creditors and will effectively clear the path forward for a transition of ownership to AAM.
Chief Strategy Officer Matthew Beehler in a press statement said the company was grateful to the governor and state agencies who got the loan approved.
“We will continue to share important updates on our progress in the near future, including updates on job fairs and employment opportunities at Madera Community Hospital in the coming months,” Beehler said.
Elected leaders also expressed optimism about the hospital’s path to reopening.
"Madera and the surrounding communities are in desperate need of healthcare services and access,” State Senator Anna Caballero said in a statement. “I look forward to the day when the hospital can open its doors to serve the public.”
Assemblymember Esmeralda Soria, a new member of the legislature who is fighting for reelection, said getting the hospital back open has been one of her top priorities. She said the loan announcements moved the community closer to that goal.
Local officials like Madera Mayor Santos Garcia and County Supervisor Leticia Gonzalez also praised the loan announcement.
