BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. – Brevard County Fire Rescue will soon no longer be allowed to transport patients to Orlando Health Rockledge Hospital.
Starting April 7, the change comes about two weeks before the hospital is scheduled to close. The hospital group announced it would close Rockledge Hospital, citing years of facility neglect and costly repairs.
Orlando Dominguez, the county’s assistant fire chief, says Orlando Health’s shutdown plans are going to negatively impact patient care.
“Not only is that area vacant as far as an emergency department, but our transport times are going to double in addition to that because once we get to the facility, then chances are they’re going to be overwhelmed,” Dominguez said.
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The Cocoa City Council approved a resolution urging Orlando Health to reconsider closing the hospital and for the state to possibly get involved.
It was discussed during a city council meeting last week that while Rockledge looks into taking control of the hospital itself, a state medical zoning law prohibits towns and cities from doing so. The message now heads to Tallahassee in hopes the state government can step in and help.
Orlando Health says the facility is is such bad shape that it would be cheaper to build a new facility.
Orlando Health said it was aware before buying Rockledge Hospital that it was in poor condition after years of neglect. The true extent, however, was discovered during inspections conducted after the acquisition.
“It was determined that the cost to repair and renovate Rockledge Hospital far exceeds the cost of a new, state-of-the-art hospital,” an Orlando Health announcement read.
The hospital is currently set to close on April 22.
The healthcare system said it has established a transition team to assist patients, physicians, and team members affected by the closure.
The president of Parrish Medical Center in Titusville also expressed his concerns with closing the hospital during Tuesday’s county commission meeting.
“Never in my 41 years in healthcare have I witnessed such a careless disregard for the health of a community,” George Mikitarian said.
Some county commissioners shared a similar sentiment.
“You could probably argue that there will be people who die as a result of closing this ER,” Thad Altman said.
Katie Delaney said other hospitals will have difficulty taking on the new influx of patients.
Health First’s hospitals in Cocoa Beach and Viera are eight and ten miles away from Rockledge Hospital.
“So not only are our emergency services going to be held up with longer transport times, but the hospitals that would be picking up the slack don’t have the ability to handle this increase,” Delaney said.
Health First is moving Cape Canaveral Hospital located in Cocoa Beach to Merritt Island, but while it would be five minutes closer to Rockledge, it’s under construction right now and won’t open for at least two years.
