Rural healthcare facilities face closures and reduced hours amid worsening physician shortage

A worsening physician shortage is forcing rural healthcare facilities to reduce services, highlighted by Northern Health cutting overnight emergency hours at Nats’oojeh Hospital in Fort St. James, British Columbia, until at least October 2026. This local crisis mirrors broader North American trends; an AMN Healthcare report projects a U.S. shortage of 86,000 physicians by 2036, exacerbated by clinician burnout and federal funding cuts. In response, local leaders and First Nations have hired their own recruiter to attract doctors.

Fort St. James emergency closures

• ▪The emergency department at Nats’oojeh Hospital in Fort St. James experienced four weekend closures since July 1, 2026, and approximately 75 closures overall in 2026 due to staffing shortages.
• ▪Northern Health reduced the emergency department hours at Nats’oojeh Hospital in Fort St. James, British Columbia, due to a physician shortage, with the changes expected to continue until at least October 2026.
• ▪The emergency department at Nats’oojeh Hospital in Fort St. James will operate from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on weekdays, occasionally scaling back to 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., with weekend hours announced weekly.

Rural physician shortage drivers

• ▪The United States is projected to face a shortage of up to 86,000 physicians by 2036 and a deficit of registered nurses exceeding 63,000 by 2030, according to AMN Healthcare.
• ▪The ongoing physician shortage is driven by an aging population, high rates of clinician burnout, and a growing number of patients with chronic diseases, according to an AMN Healthcare report.

Recruitment challenges

• ▪In 2025, rural areas in the United States filled registered nurse positions at only one-third the rate of their urban counterparts, according to AMN Healthcare.
• ▪Fort St. James has the capacity for eight doctors but is operating at half capacity and is scheduled to lose at least one more physician before the end of 2026.
• ▪Only 2% of new physicians in the United States expressed a desire to work in sparsely populated rural areas, according to an AMN Healthcare report.

Federal funding cuts impact

• ▪The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which includes cuts to Medicare and Medicaid, is expected to reduce reimbursement rates and increase uncompensated care, potentially forcing more rural U.S. hospitals to close.
• ▪The United States primary care system had over 7,700 federally designated health professional shortage areas in rural regions last year, requiring an estimated 13,254 additional primary care providers to eliminate.

Community responses

• ▪Community leaders and local First Nations in Fort St. James hired a healthcare recruiter to work with Northern Health to attract doctors to the region.
• ▪District of Fort St. James Mayor Martin Elphee expressed frustration over the emergency room hours reduction, noting that patients face long drives to Vanderhoof or Prince George during medical emergencies.

Health authority responses

• ▪Northern Health plans to share regular monthly updates on efforts to stabilize and improve emergency care access in Fort St. James, aiming to restore overnight services if locum support is secured.
• ▪Northern Health vice president of clinical operations Lisa Zetes-Zanatta stated that the reduction in emergency room hours is temporary to prevent remaining local physicians from burning out.