Bowie emergency room closing its doors in October

BOWIE ( KFDX/KJTL ) — As Texas and other states grapple with a rural health system crisis and struggle to keep rural hospitals open, the Faith Community ER in Bowie shutters its doors.

The ER will close its doors on Oct. 6 at 7 a.m.

A press release from the Faith Community Health System cited a lack of financial assistance as one of the reasons it has to close.

Officials said the hospital had tried to convert the facility under a law called Rural Emergency Hospital, but the legislation’s wording prevented conversion because the Bowie ER is not an acute care hospital.

According to the press release, the $3.2 million the hospital would have received in funding from that program would have kept it running.

The emergency room opened on Oct. 23, 2023 , three years after the previous one closed. The hospital said it met its goal to provide emergency Level IV trauma care to Bowie patients but didn’t meet its projections for facility productivity, economy, or utilization.

The hospital noted that it received tremendous support and positive feedback from the Bowie community and Montague County.

If eligible, the current employees of the ER will transfer to other Faith Community Health System facilities. The FCHS Rural Health Clinic, located on North Mill Street, is currently unaffected by the ER closure and will continue to serve Bowie and the surrounding communities.

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