Santa Clara County studies potential impact if San Benito County’s rural hospital closes

SANTA CLARA COUNTY IS FORECASTING additional stress on its public health care system — the second largest in the state — if the only rural hospital in neighboring San Benito County closes.

A January report from Santa Clara Valley Healthcare estimates the closure of Hazel Hawkins Memorial Hospital — a 25-bed facility in Hollister — would strain the county’s hospital system because the next closest emergency department is St. Louise Regional Hospital in Gilroy. St. Louise operates at nearly two times the county’s average of emergency department visits, officials said. If Hazel Hawkins closed, the report warns emergency department visits would rise to approximately 2.4 times the county average.