After opening a health center in Bridgton four years ago, DFD Russell Medical Center will close the clinic on August 28.
Leaders at DFD Russell said in a written statement that they face many financial pressures: from losing a vital community grant, to low reimbursement rates from commercial insurers, to ongoing uncertainty around Medicare and Medicaid. Combined with the difficulty of recruiting skilled providers to rural Maine, they say they had to close the Bridgton Health Center.
“This is not a decision we made lightly, and it is not a reflection of our commitment to the Bridgton community,” the leadership team shared in a joint statement. “Rather, it is a decision rooted in responsibility—responsibility to quality care, our patients, our staff, and the long-term sustainability of rural health care.”
Bridgton Health Center is one of four locations operated by DFD Russell, and serves roughly 1,700 patients. Leaders say staff will help patients transition to other practices in the area, including Naples Family Practice, North Bridgton Family Practice, and Sacopee Valley Health Center in Porter.
Health providers across Maine, both large and small, face precarious financial positions.
In April, Community Clinical Services in Lewiston announced it was closing several clinics and laying off 40 staff.
And this week Northern Light Inland Hospital in Waterville permanently closed.
