Chippewa Valley Officials Renew Calls for More Healthcare Support

Chippewa Valley officials are still calling for more support to address the healthcare crisis in the short-term as long-term plans unfold.

Earlier this week, State Representative Jodi Emerson released a statement calling on the State Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee to release $15 million in approved emergency funding. The emergency funding was approved following the closure of HSHS Sacred Heart Hospital in Eau Claire and HSHS St. Joseph’s Hospital in Chippewa Falls, but stalled in the Republican-controlled committee after Governor Tony Evers used line item vetoes to make the funding more flexible.

Since that funding was approved, various healthcare organizations have opened new clinics or expanded their services, Aspirus Health is planning a new hospital in Chippewa Falls, and the Chippewa Valley Health Cooperative is developing plans for a new hospital in Lake Hallie and acquiring the St. Joseph’s facility. Still, local residents are struggling with healthcare access as those long-term plans come to fruition.

In the statement, Representative Emerson praised the efforts by the cooperative to improve healthcare access in the region, and called for the emergency funding to be released so the cooperative could put it to good use.

Additionally, the Chippewa County Board voted in support of bringing more inpatient psychiatric beds to the region after losing many with the hospital closures. According to a WQOW report, a number of Western Wisconsin counties have passed similar resolutions in an effort to draw attention to the issue during the state budget approval process.

The $15 million in emergency funding was originally intended to add more inpatient psychiatric beds at the HSHS facilities before their announced closure.