Facing severe financial hardships, Bucktail Medical Center, the sole medical provider in the region, has been awarded $1 million by the Pennsylvania Department of Community & Economic Development to help ensure continued healthcare access for the Renovo community and Western Clinton County.

In operation since 1909, Bucktail Medical Center is a critical access hospital providing services that include acute care, ambulance service, a 24-hour emergency room, labs, imaging, physical therapy and a community clinic. Residents frequently utilize Bucktail’s range of medical, diagnostic and referral services as well as its outpatient rehabilitation services, including physical, occupational and speech therapy, underscoring the ongoing need for this vital care.

“In 2023, like many rural hospitals nationwide, Bucktail faced a significant ongoing financial shortfall,” said President of the Bucktail Medical Center Board of Directors, John Lugg. “The board was having discussions about whether the Bucktail Medical Center would have to close, negatively affecting the health and well-being of our entire community and creating a profound loss for the Renovo and Western Clinton County communities.”

To rescue the hospital, local residents and elected officials joined forces to explore options for keeping its doors open.

HUNTER SMITH/THE EXPRESS Pa. legislators, State Sen. Cris Dush (R-25), pictured above, and Rep. Stephanie Borowicz (R-76) were instrumental in securing funding to stabilize the finances of Bucktail Medical Center.

According to the panel of speakers at Monday’s announcement, community members have played a key role in keeping the doors open at Bucktail Medical Center, stepping up to support the facility through practical endeavors such as a three-day volunteer effort to perform maintenance tasks and improvements. Keeping the hospital operational required difficult decisions, including changes in leadership and making the painful decision to close the facility’s nursing home unit.

National organizations have also come forward to support Bucktail Medical Center, including the nonprofit Rural Health Redesign Center (RHRC). Through sharing proven tactics and working to advance innovative rural health policy with politicians at all levels of government, the RHRC supports rural hospitals and healthcare facilities like Bucktail.

“Like Western Clinton County residents, millions of Americans living in rural communities face higher risk of poor health outcomes and shorter life expectancies than their urban counterparts. They have limited access to high quality healthcare, so preserving organizations such as Bucktail Medical Center is essential,” said Janice Walters, executive director of the RHRC.

Walters added, “Our success would not be possible without this team of dedicated individuals. As you can see, it took a collective group of vested stakeholders to achieve success in keeping Bucktail Medical Center open thus far, but the journey is not over. The current healthcare system is not sustainable without innovative solutions that will be needed if we are going to sustain health care and rural communities such as Renovo.”

She noted more than half of rural hospitals across the country operate at a loss, exemplifying the importance of the organization’s efforts to support hospitals, engage policymakers and promote innovative, sustainable solutions for rural healthcare.

HUNTER SMITH/THE EXPRESS Bucktail Medical Center Board of Directors President John Lugg is pictured.

The CEO of Bucktail Medical Center Laura Murnyack says she’s seen first hand the life saving difference the hospital makes on a daily basis.

“By providing quality health care services, including emergency services, Bucktail Medical Center strengthens the fabric of this community and in turn supports the local economy by helping to attract new businesses, industry and retirees seeking to make their home and community where essential services are readily available and accessible,” said Murnyack.

She noted the hospital plays an important part in the region’s economy as one of the county’s largest employers, contributing over $10 million annually in economic impact.

“The $1 million makes it possible for Bucktail Medical Center to continue serving the healthcare needs of the Renovo community and western Clinton County. Our doors remain open, and we offer comprehensive healthcare services for people of all ages, from infants to seniors,” she said.

Sen. Dush, a former first responder and one of the key advocates for the grant, said he is dedicated to preserving rural healthcare, which he emphasized is “truly a matter of life and death.”

HUNTER SMITH/THE EXPRESS Clinton County Commissioner Angela Harding are pictured speaking at the grant announcement.

“Bucktail Medical Center is critical to people who without it would have to drive an hour each way for emergency care,” said Dush. “We could not stand by and let that ‘Golden Hour’ — which emergency medical providers know is critical to saving lives — to be flatlined due to travel rather than treatment.”

He added that the funding is just one part of what the team have done to increase the income for the hospital, improve operations and provide for the financial stability of Bucktail until these measures have time to take effect.

Each speaker took a moment to thank the sizable team that worked together to keep Bucktail financially afloat.

“This is the perfect example of electing the right people,” said Clinton County Commissioner Angela Harding. “This effort was bipartisan. Every single month, every single representative from the Governor’s Office all the way down to the Commissioners Office were present on those calls.”

The speakers expressed gratitude to the Governor’s Office for initiating outreach to the RHRC and enabling them to make a difference; the Pennsylvania Department of Health; the Pennsylvania Legislature, particularly Sen. Dush and Rep. Borowicz, for securing funding to stabilize the organization; federal legislators, including U.S. Sen. John Fetterman, U.S. Sen. Bob Casey and U.S. Rep. Glenn Thompson, along with their staff, for brainstorming solutions; the county commissioners, who consistently stepped in to provide assistance when needed; the Pennsylvania State Office of Rural Health for their advocacy and interventions throughout the process; payors, especially Geisinger Health Plan, for working quickly to facilitate alternative payment arrangements that ensured a predictable cash flow to sustain operations; Geisinger Health System, which assisted with supply chain needs by donating key supplies in early 2024; the Bucktail Board of Directors, for supporting sustainability efforts and making tough but necessary decisions at critical junctures; and the staff, who faithfully showed up every day to care for the residents of this community.

CEO of Bucktail Medical Center Laura Murnyack says she’s seen first hand the life saving difference the hospital makes on a daily basis. HUNTER SMITH/THE EXPRESS

“This is a huge win for Clinton County, our healthcare professionals, patients and community,” said State Rep. Stephanie Borowicz. “I am beyond grateful for Sen. Dush’s efforts — as well as those of the Senate Republicans — for helping this critical funding come to fruition for Bucktail Medical Center.”

Emphasizing that efforts must continue until a sustainable path is secured, Harding said, “My final message is while we’re all coming together to talk about something extremely positive and the future is looking bright, we cannot take our foot off the gas pedal.”

“From a state standpoint, definitely more conversations need to happen,” she added. “Until then, we will continue to meet, converse and find solutions and opportunities for the future of Bucktail Medical Center that make it sustainable and make sure that it’s here for another 100 years.”