ONTONAGON, Mich. (WLUC) – Aspirus Health Care plans to pull emergency and hospital services from its Ontonagon hospital on Saturday.
Norman Pestka, president of Pestka Construction, and his son Dan Pestka live in Ontonagon County. Norman said he doesn’t think Aspirus is following its motto by deciding to pull its hospital and emergency services from Ontonagon.
“Their motto has always been, ‘Compassion for people.’ I don’t know what the word means, but I think it means, ‘We care for the people.’ That’s what Aspirus has always said so I just want that to come back,” Norman said.
Norman’s son Dan lives with cerebral palsy. Norman said without the Aspirus Ontonagon Hospital there to stabilize Dan during an emergency, lifesaving treatment could be a nearly three-hour drive or an emergency helicopter flight to the Aspirus Wausau Hospital.
That’s where Dr. Craig Kelman is located. Norman said Dr. Kelman has saved Dan’s life multiple times.
“We never had to take a helicopter because he gets stabilized in Ontonagon and away we go. But if he couldn’t get stabilized here in the future, we would have to rush him to Wausau and that could be an issue,” Norman explained.
The Pestkas are far from the only ones in the county who have relied on the Aspirus Ontonagon Hospital in a life-or-death situation.
Ontonagon Township Supervisor Steve Store recalls a near-fatal car crash his sister may not have survived if not for the hospital in Ontonagon.
“My sister ended up in a bad crash this winter. If she didn’t have the emergency room in Ontonagon to stabilize her, she would have never made it. They had to airlift her to Duluth, MN,” Store said.
In September 2021, Aspirus Health Care announced plans to construct a $15.8 million modern facility to replace the current hospital, which is currently not up to code, but grandfathered into the system. In March 2022, Aspirus said its plans for the new facility were being finalized.
Then around two years later on Feb. 20, 2024, Aspirus said in a press release that it would be ending the hospital’s emergency services on April 20.
“We were being told the hospital would be closing in 60 days. That was the first notice of anything occurring of such a significant impact to the county,” Mike Kocher, the Ontonagon County emergency manager and 911 director, said.
Like many, Kocher is still unsure why Aspirus’ plan changed so drastically.
“What happened in the last three years to change Aspirus’ mind, I have no idea. Whether Aspirus looked at the financial impact, we have no idea what changed Aspirus’ mind on that,” Kocher added.
Kocher said he thinks Aspirus is ending emergency services at the hospital because it is losing money, but Aspirus has not confirmed its reason.
“Based on some of the indications the Aspirus administration gave us, it was a losing proposition. That’s why I think Aspirus wants to convert the hospital into a rural health clinic,” Kocher noted.
In its February press release, Aspirus said, “Currently, Aspirus Ontonagon Hospital serves just one inpatient a day on average. Some days, there are no inpatients.”
Kocher said he does not dispute Aspirus’ claim, but he added that, on average, there has been a low number of inpatients at Aspirus Ontonagon Hospital for many years.
Kocher said this included when Aspirus announced its original plan to expand the Ontonagon hospital in September 2021.
“That’s been that way for 19-20 years. Something along the way had to have happened where Aspirus decided it wasn’t worth a money investment to keep an ER and hospital open,” Kocher explained.
In addition to those who live in the county, Kocher said the lack of emergency services in Ontonagon could deter tourists from visiting the area.
“Not having an ER within proximity to the Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park and all the other tourism that happens up here is not good. People come up to our area expecting that we will have some sort of emergency services, but we will have none,” Kocher said.
Aspirus said it will keep a rural health clinic where the hospital used to be. While it will not offer emergency services, Aspirus said its services will include retail pharmacy, physical, occupational and speech therapy, specialty outreach for cardiology, women’s health, podiatry and diabetes.
Kocher said those services will be beneficial but will not include necessary lifesaving treatment.
“It will still be a clinic. The clinic will have some enhanced services, but what worries us as county officials is the fact that if anything happens after 5:00 p.m., then you’re taking an hour’s ride to the next county. That could be something as simple as a cut that needs stitches, that won’t be done in a clinic,” Kocher explained.
Aspirus said to TV6 in March that it would not comment on its decision any further than it did in its February press release.
Kocher said for more than a month after Aspirus announced it would end emergency services at the Ontonagon hospital, it did not respond to Ontonagon County’s multiple requests for comment.
“That was not successful until we had Congressman Bergman assist us in making that meeting happen,” Kocher noted.
Kocher added that Aspirus finally responded in late March, saying it did not see a way to keep the hospital.
“Aspirus felt it would not fit in this particular scenario and that was the end of what we received from them,” Kocher said.
SONCO Ambulance Company is supported by a millage in Ontonagon County.
Kocher said it and Aspirus MedEvac ambulances will remain open and continue to respond to emergency medical calls when you dial 911. However, after the Aspirus Ontonagon Hospital ends its emergency services, both will no longer be able to transport patients to Ontonagon.
Instead, EMS workers will have to drive patients about an hour to either the Baraga County Memorial Hospital in L’Anse, UP Health System – Portage in Hancock, or Aspirus Ironwood Hospital.
Kocher said this would turn a roughly 30-minute roundtrip for ambulance workers into a much longer trip.
“We’re looking at a minimum of a three to four-hour turnaround for our ambulance company. We have no idea what that’s going to look like in the wintertime,” Kocher explained.
Despite all the negatives, Kocher said there is a positive note to end on for most of the hospital’s employees.
“The majority, up to 70-75% of the employees were able to find other positions within Aspirus. That has been fantastic,” Kocher added.
Despite the odds being largely against them, one group of county, state and federal lawmakers is still working to keep hospital and emergency services in Ontonagon.
Rep. Greg Markkanen is one of many in talks with Aspirus to try and save the hospital. Rep. Markkanen said there is a path forward for Aspirus to keep its emergency room in Ontonagon, but it is up to Aspirus to make that decision.
“A rural emergency hospital designation is a federal package that would fund a critical care facility for a rural area just like the Village of Ontonagon,” Rep. Markkanen explained.
According to Congressman Jack Bergman’s office, an REH designation would give the Aspirus Ontonagon Hospital around $270,000 per month and better medicare reimbursement. In exchange, the hospital would have to keep its 24-hour emergency department, observation beds for patients and certain key health services.
Rep. Markkanen said this could effectively keep an emergency room in Ontonagon.
“We’re working through Congressman Bergman’s office and Sen. Stabenow and Sen. Peters’ offices are also supporting the effort to get that designation if Aspirus chooses to go that route,” Rep. Markkannen explained.
While the group continues to petition Aspirus, Kocher said he doubts the health care provider will opt for the REH designation.
“After having sat down with the three top administrators for the three U.P. hospitals, it was pretty clear that they looked at the REH designation. It didn’t fit and the doors are closing on April 20,” Kocher said.
During this meeting, Kocher said the county asked Aspirus if the hospital would be considered for sale after it closes.
While a rural health clinic owned by Aspirus will remain at the hospital, Kocher hopes that another entity could buy the hospital to continue emergency services at some point in the future.
Kocher added that right now, there is a possibility of a buyer down the line, but there is currently no interest.
“The answer the Aspirus administration gave was that they have no offers on the table. We interpreted that as there is a possibility for a buyer, but right now we do not have anybody interested in buying a hospital,” Kocher noted.
Even when the Aspirus Ontonagon Hospital ends it emergency services, Ontonagon County Sheriff Dale Rantala said people should still dial 911 for medical emergencies.
To make up for the longer travel distance to an emergency room, Rantala said the sheriff’s office hopes to certify its deputies, corrections officers and even the county’s volunteer firefighters in medical first responder training.
“Which is just under EMT training, but at least when one of my deputies goes to the scene they will have the gear and the knowledge to prepare the patient so when the ambulance comes they will be transported to the closest hospital,” Rantala said.
Sheriff Rantala said he is not giving up hope on a possible solution to maintain a full-service hospital and emergency room in Ontonagon.
“Short-term it’s very concerning, but we are working on solutions so hopefully long term it doesn’t affect us as much as it would in theory,” Rantala added.
The group hopes Aspirus reconsiders the REH proposal, but says its most likely option now would be to find another buyer for the hospital and emergency department.
The group asks Ontonagon County residents to be patient as it continues to explore solutions.
As for Aspirus, the health care provider told us it will not comment any further on its decision to close the hospital.
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