Healthcare Options Change, New Clinics Arrive

There are replacements coming for the loss of healthcare options in western Wisconsin.

Oakleaf Clinics yesterday said it will open four new locations in May. The new clinics will replace some of the Prevea clinics that are set to close. Oakleaf’s Chris Longbella says the new clinic will open in Cornell, Ladysmith, Menomonie, and Rice Lake. Prevea announced back in January that it is closing dozens of clinics this spring. Longbella says Oakleaf is also looking to expand urgent care services in Chippewa Falls to help replace St. Joseph’s Hospital which closed last week. CLICK HERE FOR FULL EXPANSION DETAILS AND DATES.

As the landscape changes, the Chippewa Valley Health Cooperative is not giving-up on the idea of a community hospital. Organizers say there is a need for another hospital in Eau Claire since Sacred Heart closed last week. The state says its closure cost Eau Claire about a third of its care options. There is a lot of work to do, and no one is guessing when a new hospital could open. Part of that work is a study to see just how much the old Sacred Heart Hospital, and all of its stuff, is worth.