Idaho hospital terminating labor and delivery services due to political climate
Luke Gentile
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A hospital in Idaho announced Friday that it would terminate its labor and delivery services due to the political climate and doctor shortages.
“Highly respected, talented physicians are leaving,” Bonner General Health in Sandpoint, Idaho, said in a release. “Recruiting replacements will be extraordinarily difficult.”
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Women who would use the 25-bed hospital for labor and delivery services will have to seek care at facilities in Spokane, Washington, or Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, according to a report.
Bonner General Health delivered 265 babies and treated fewer than 10 pediatric patients last year, the hospital said.
Many challenges have hampered rural facilities struggling to keep their doors open, including the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
Across the nation, hospitals in states with more stringent laws surrounding abortion have seen an increased risk of dropping doctors and staff to areas with fewer restrictions on the practice.
Idaho has heavy abortion restrictions, causing many healthcare professionals in the state to be placed in an ethical bind.
“The Idaho Legislature continues to introduce and pass bills that criminalize physicians for medical care nationally recognized as the standard of care,” the Bonner General Health statement said. “Consequences for Idaho Physicians providing the standard of care may include civil litigation and criminal prosecution, leading to jail time or fines.”
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Along with a troubling political climate, Bonner General Health reported that shortages in its staff and a demographic shift led to “the emotional and difficult decision” to terminate its labor and delivery services.
“We have made every effort to avoid eliminating these services,” according to Bonner General Health Board President Ford Elsaesser. “We hoped to be the exception, but our challenges are impossible to overcome now.”