Surgery center closes its doors in Medford after three decades
Published 11:32 am Wednesday, July 1, 2026
Asante attempted to acquire SCSO in a last-ditch effort to keep the surgery center open, but withdrew the application after a nine-month process
The Surgery Center of Southern Oregon permanently closed its doors on Tuesday after 29 years in business, leaving two large vacant buildings along East Barnett Road across from Asante’s Rogue Regional Medical Center.
A full year after the facility and Asante officials initiated plans for Asante to acquire the financially struggling facility, there were no 11th-hour solutions that surfaced in recent weeks to maintain the surgery center, which provided surgical, endoscopy and pain management services.
Asante officials withdrew an application with the Oregon Health Authority May 1 after an extensive nine-month process that involved providing more than 400 pages of requested documents and responding to over 100 supplemental questions by state health officials.
Under state law, review of proposed health care business deals requires review under the Health Care Market Oversight (HCMO) program, a program created by state legislators in 2022 in response to increasing health care consolidation which, according to OHA officials, often occurs “through confidential business deals and without public input.”
Asante officials had requested an exemption process, which would have expedited the process.
Asante officials, in filings with the Oregon Health Authority’s Health Care Market Oversight (HCMO) program, said purchase of the surgery center along East Barnett Road was a last-ditch effort to prevent closure of the facility, salvage more than 80 healthcare worker jobs and maintain needed capacity for the local healthcare system.
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State health officials reported that Asante officials refused to provide requested information, while Asante Chief Public Affairs Officer Kristin Roy, in filed documents, reported that OHA officials requested information that “would have required Asante and SCSO to breach multiple existing contractual obligations, exposing both entities to potential liability for damages.”
Kamee Wearden, executive committee member of the Surgery Center of Southern Oregon, confirmed the facility’s final day of operation Tuesday afternoon.
“This decision was not made lightly. We are deeply grateful for the trust our patients, physicians, employees, and community have placed in us over the years,” Wearden wrote to the Rogue Valley Times. “It has been our privilege to provide high-quality outpatient surgical care to thousands of patients throughout the region.”
Surgery center officials did not offer any insight into the next step for the more than 80 surgery center employees or plans for the 1.5-acre property at 2798 East Barnett Road on which the facility stands.
The facility is made up of two buildings, including an 18,818-square-foot building erected in 1997 and a second 8,451-square-foot structure built in 2015.
Wearden said patients would still receive care from other facilities through existing providers.
“It is important to emphasize the closure does not affect patients’ ongoing medical care with their physician,” she wrote.
“Their surgeon or treating provider will continue to coordinate care and future procedures through other facilities as appropriate. We encourage patients to reach out to their surgeon’s office for any questions regarding their care or post-operative instructions.”
Reach reporter Buffy Pollock at 458-488-2029 or buffy.pollock@rv-times.com. Follow her on Twitter @orwritergal.