Idaho hospital to stop delivering babies. One reason? ‘Bills that criminalize physicians'
Bonner General Health, the only hospital in Sandpoint, announced Friday that it will no longer provide obstetrical services to the city of more tha...
Bonner General Health, the only hospital in Sandpoint, announced Friday that it will no longer provide obstetrical services to the city of more than 9,000 people, meaning patients will have to drive 46 miles for labor and delivery care. The hospital's board of directors and senior leadership called the decision emotional and difficult, and cited a loss of pediatricians, changing demographics and Idaho's legal and political climate around health care as the reasons. 'We have made every effort to avoid eliminating these services,' said Ford Elsaesser, the hospital's board president, in a news release.