Hazel Hawkins withdraws notice to close

Hazel Hawkins Memorial Hospital of Hollister, California is revoking the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notice Act notice first issued in December 2022 after the hospital improved its financial position.

WARN notifications are usually issued when a closure is imminent. According to a March 21 press release by Hazel Hawkins, the hospital beat its financial projections by more than $11 million between November 2022 and February 2023.

The San Benito Health District is extending the projected date that Hazel Hawkins will run out of money to the end of summer 2023.

To maintain long-term stability, the hospital is still looking for a buyer and has received one letter of intent from a qualified person.

“Our efforts to implement a long-term stabilization strategy with a qualified partner represent the most feasible and likely path to preserve the county’s healthcare facilities and San Benito County operations,” interim CEO Mary Casillas said in a press release. “There is still a lot of work to be done and we are far from the finish line. We will continue to need the help of the local community to keep the future of healthcare in our community.”