Madera Community Hospital

A financial crisis forced the closure of Madera County's only acute-care hospital in January 2023. State regulators notified hospital officials on Monday that they had granted a license to reopen.

The closure of Madera Community Hospital in January 2023 created ripples that affected hospitals in neighboring Fresno and Merced counties. Its impending reopening is expected to ease the strain on access to care in the region.

A state inspection of Madera Community Hospital next month could be the final step before it reopens. A community group said residents are ready to have their hospital back.

Madera County residents have now gone 18 months without a hospital. In that time, the consequences on public health haven’t been so clear. We investigate just how much health outcomes have changed.

The prospective operator of Madera Community Hospital on Tuesday cleared one of its final hurdles to begin reopening the hospital that has been closed since December 2022.

On Monday, the state approved a $57 million, interest-free Distressed Hospital Loan for the company planning to reopen the hospital.

Two objections filed in federal bankruptcy court raise questions about the ability of Madera Community Hospital’s owner-to-be to operate the facility as a true safety net hospital. A judge will likely discuss the arguments in a hearing later this month.

Many health experts, community advocates and lawmakers had hoped the federal judge would delay his decision to allow for more time for UCSF, Adventist and Madera County to develop a competing offer on the hospital.

A judge on Tuesday approved a plan by American Advanced Management to operate Madera Community Hospital, capping off a lengthy day of hearings and a year of legal hurdles for the bankrupt hospital.

UCSF Health and Adventist Health have developed a potential plan to purchase the shuttered Madera Community Hospital as a separate deal currently makes its way through court.