KVVU-TV in Las Vegas reports a confirmation from the CEO of Boulder City Hospital in Nevada that the facility will lay off approximately 70 employees and “end several services, including stays longer than 24 hours, as it transitions from a critical access hospital to a rural emergency hospital.” That transition will become official on May 1.
Affected employees were notified on Friday that their positions would be terminated in 60 days, reports the TV station.
The hospital’s long-term care unit, which houses approximately 35 residents for custodial care, will continue operating, with the hospital’s skilled nursing rehabilitation program moving into that unit, KVVU reports.
CEO Thomas Maher told KVVU that the restructuring “is driven by financial conditions facing the hospital as a small, independent facility” – including funding changes in HR1, popularly known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) – that he described as “significant.”
Mr. Maher was quoted: “I am sorry for the disruption in the lives of our employees, but it is a necessary evil. We are disrupting a lot of lives and recognize that. But the financial future of the hospital kind of outweighs that situation, unfortunately.”
Of the OBBBA, Mr. Maher told KVVU, “I prefer to call it HR1 because it wasn’t big and beautiful for a lot of hospitals. That bill cut Medicaid significantly.”
The hospital issued a statement regarding its transition from a critical access hospital to a rural emergency hospital: “This transition is not about reducing care — it’s about preserving care. Converting to a Rural Emergency Hospital ensures that our community continues to have reliable emergency services today and into the future.”
The transition means that patient stays cannot exceed 24 hours, and that some surgical and psychiatric services will be halted. Mr. Maher told the TV station that the designation change will activate a 5% bonus in Medicare payments for outpatient services, and a subsidy of approximately $3.54 million a year in equal monthly installments of $295,000.
