For more than two years, Williamston’s local hospital has sat empty, with a faded banner blocking the entrance that tells people with emergencies to call 911.
The closure of Martin General Hospital has meant much longer ambulance rides and big concerns about the state of healthcare in this rural county. But local leaders are hopeful the building could reopen soon as a smaller facility known as a rural emergency hospital.
Local leaders have worked with Greenville-based ECU Health to develop a plan to restore healthcare in Martin County, which is home to about 22,000 people, about halfway between Raleigh and the Outer Banks.
ECU Health officials say the plan hinges on a $220 million allocation from the state legislature, which is currently tied up in stalled budget negotiations.
Chief Operating Officer Brian Floyd says reopening the Williamston hospital will require a new business model.
“Just turning that hospital back on won't work,” Floyd said. “Just setting up an emergency room there, it'll help, but it won't be sustainable. It won't really solve enough of the problem, but in the context of a system of care, where ECU Health can leverage several locations, we think we can do the most good.”
The $220 million state funding request would cover facility costs for the Williamston hospital and a new tower at ECU Health’s Beaufort Hospital, which is located 30 minutes from Williamston and would treat patients needing longer-term and specialized care.
“By doing so, we can actually serve not just the Martin County area, but the surrounding areas in a more effective, efficient way,” Floyd said. “Martin County has more than 20,000 people there, and they have volunteer EMS systems, and now no emergency service anywhere nearby, and so they're having a crisis of healthcare.”
The Senate sought to tie the Martin County and Beaufort hospital projects to a larger rural healthcare funding package it approved with additional Medicaid funding requested by Gov. Josh Stein. But the House preferred to pass the Medicaid money separately in a standalone bill, and none of the proposals has so far made it to the governor’s desk.
The hospital closure remains a hot topic at businesses in sleepy downtown Williamston. On a recent Monday morning, B.Mocha Coffee Shop was one of the only businesses open.
Tiwon and Jeffrey Edwards opened the only coffee shop in all of Martin County a few years ago.
They recently bought a larger space down the street and plan to expand the shop with sandwiches and lunch items. But while their business is growing, they’ve heard lots of concerns from their regulars about the state of healthcare in Williamston.
“When you take stuff like that, or you’re not willing to fight to keep something like that, now your children, their children, have to go to Greenville,” she said.
The coffee shop owners are originally from Washington, D.C. They saw the Main Street building for rent when passing through the area and thought it could be the perfect spot for a coffee shop.
“We'd never heard of Williamston,” Tiwon Edwards said. “So to come here and to be considered as foreigners, and to get that much support, that's why we’ve got to give back, just because of the support.”
To hear more about the hospital’s future and how it impacts the economic state of Williamston and Martin County more broadly, WUNC News spoke with County Manager Drew Batts.
NOTE: This transcript has been edited for brevity and clarity.
Tell me a bit about the history of Martin General Hospital and some of the factors that led up to its closing in 2023.
“Martin General had been a longstanding hospital here in Martin County, and in the years leading up to the shutdown, Quorum Health, who was managing the hospital at the time, had suffered millions in losses and fairly abruptly decided to shutter the operations. If you went into the facility today, it's like the people walked out overnight, and that was it.”
What's been the impact on the broader healthcare access landscape for Martin County?
“Obviously it provided a source of income for many, and most of those employees lived right here in Martin County. We're also suffering on the EMS end. We have multiple satellite EMS offices that are volunteer-based, and the county has always provided some type of a stipend to these different groups to allow them to operate. But we are now providing almost $1.5 million a year to help support the EMS services due to the wear and tear on the vehicles. It's quite a bit more on the road than it was before, from having a local hospital within 10 miles of any given point in the county, to 20 miles at best (to a neighboring county’s hospital).”
Have you seen an impact on Martin County's overall economy?
“It's making it really tough to approach and encourage bigger businesses to come to Martin County. One of the first questions you get is, ‘what type of healthcare systems do you have?’ It’s a natural deterrent to larger companies coming into this area, and it also has affected the companies that exist here. We have a couple of car dealerships in town, and every one of them has reported sales losses since the hospital shut down.”
Do the uncertainties involved with Medicaid funding at the state and national level right now make this more difficult?
“It obviously provides some more insecurities in this situation, but overall, I don't know that it impacts it quite as much as you might think. Whether we have Medicaid in the way that we want it, there’s still a need for healthcare here, and I feel like the legislature will help us address it.”
Listen to the full conversation on the WUNC Politics Podcast. And listeners in Williamston and Martin County can check out WUNC News on the radio at 88.9 FM.
Three things to do in Williamston
River Landing: A recently expanded boardwalk along the Roanoke River offers a scenic walk and multiple fishing spots, and there’s even a camping shelter for people paddling down the river. It’s the site of a wharf which once brought commerce to town from the coast. The one-mile Skewarkee Rail Trail connects the area with downtown.
Shaw’s Bar-B-Q House: The barbecue restaurant has been a Williamston institution for a half-century, attracting locals and beach-bound traffic alike. In addition to the usual Eastern North Carolina-style barbecue menu, Shaw’s also makes its own sauces and sausage.
Hook Hand Brewery Taproom & Art Gallery: While plenty of small towns boast craft breweries, Hook Hand is more funky and artsy than your typical pale ale purveyor. The colorful space is chock full of folk art for sale, and lately the brewery has been hosting comedy shows.
