Health Care for All Oregon
PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – January 12, 2026
Contact: Lauri Hoagland/ lauri7757@aol.com 1+707-695-6262
Rally to Protest Service Closures at Asante Ashland Community Hospital
Asante has announced plans to close the birthing services and stop inpatient surgery at Asante Ashland Community Hospital (AACH) by spring 2026.
Rogue Valley HealthCare for All Oregon (RVHCAO) is a local nonprofit affiliate of HealthCare for All Oregon in Southern Oregon. Our mission is to advocate for an equitable, affordable, comprehensive, high-quality publicly funded universal health care system in Oregon. We insist that Asante honor its 2013 agreement with the community of Ashland to continue through 2028 to provide general hospital services, including birthing, in-patient and surgical services, to the residents of Ashland.
Ashland Community Hospital has been an essential service in our community since 1907. Importantly, the Ashland city charter, grants the city of Ashland the authority and direction to maintain a hospital within the city limits of our community. We demand that our elected officials honor this responsibility by insisting that Asante follow the conditions set forth in the 2013 agreement.
The Ashland birthing center, providing a water birth option and doulas, is unique in this region of Oregon. More than 200 births occurred at the hospital last year. Medford will not be able to offer these services in their current form. Moving in-patient services 11 miles away will impose unnecessary hardship and potentially life-threatening consequences on Ashland residents, particularly the elderly who represent 30 percent of our community’s population.
Senator Merkley recently cautioned Asante President and CEO Tom Gessel with regard to the planned closures: “I anticipate that this decision will hurt the health and safety of individuals seeking inpatient care, as well as expectant mothers and newborns, who will no longer have local access to care.”
We must raise our voices against these planned closures and voice our support for revamping and reinvesting
in the essential healthcare AACH currently provides. In addition to attending the rally, citizens are encouraged
to speak at the Ashland City Council meeting from 6-9:30 pm on January 20, 2026 and/or send testimony via
https://www.ashlandoregon.gov/FormCenter/City-Recorder-5/City-Council-Public-Testimony-Form-92
