THURSDAY, October 15, 2026|
Photo – MHCC Clinic in Hanna – Bigfoot99 file photo
Memorial Hospital of Carbon County and the Town of Hanna have still not reached an agreement to reopen the town’s unused clinic.
The Memorial Hospital of Carbon County Family Practice Clinic in Hanna, located at 1008 Feldspar Court, closed following the retirement of Physician Assistant Peggy Lake. Efforts to find Lake’s permanent replacement were unsuccessful and, citing “mounting operational losses”, the Memorial Hospital Board of Trustees opted to close the clinic in April 2025. The facility has remained vacant ever since.
Back in March, Hanna Mayor Charlie George announced that Steve Martin, a physician assistant with Pathfinder Medical and Saratoga Urgent Care, was willing to begin seeing patients in Hanna. Mayor George said Martin and administrators with Memorial Hospital of Carbon County, which owns the clinic building, were prepared to reach an agreement to reopen the facility sometime in April. However, that time has passed, and the Hanna Clinic is still closed.
During Tuesday evening’ s Hanna Town Council meeting, Mayor Charlie George announced that he is still negotiating with Memorial Hospital to reopen the clinic. When asked if they were making progress, Mayor George replied that they were not.
As mentioned, Memorial Hospital owns the clinic itself, but the town of Hanna owns the land beneath the building. The arrangement was made years ago, well before any of the sitting council members were in office, and without a written agreement. Hanna officials have been attempting to leverage the town’s ownership of the land to push the hospital to either reopen or sell the clinic.
At Tuesday’s Town Council meeting, Councilman Sam Sikes suggested charging Memorial Hospital rent, retroactive to when the building was first constructed, to encourage hospital administrators to work with the town. Town Attorney Mike Roberts advised against charging rent due to the lack of a written agreement between the town and the hospital. He said taking that step would trigger a lawsuit, which would be costly for the town.
In addition, Attorney Roberts said a judge would most likely order Memorial Hospital to sell the building to the town, and in that situation hospital administrators would ask a high price.
Attorney Roberts said that based on his conversations with the hospital’s legal team, he believes, with the hospital no longer in serious financial trouble, administrators no longer feel obligated to continue negotiations with the town. Mayor George said he too would like to avoid a lawsuit, adding that he would rather have Memorial Hospital accommodate the town’s request to reopen the clinic.
Councilwoman Ellen Freeman asked if the town had any other legal recourse to compel Memorial Hospital to act. Attorney Roberts said that without a written agreement, the town would need to bring the matter before a judge, which, he reiterated, would be costly. Instead, he recommended continuing negotiations outside of the courtroom.
The Board of Carbon County Commissioners are also urging Memorial Hospital administrators to reach an understanding with the town of Hanna regarding the clinic. Speaking at the October 6th Board of Commissioners meeting, Memorial Hospital Chief Operating Officer Stephanie Hinkle said she and CEO Kerry Ashment are still in negotiations with Mayor Charlie George. Commissioner John Johnson noted that at a recent Carbon County Council of Governments meeting, a Hanna Town Council member was concerned by the high price Memorial Hospital was allegedly charging to rent the clinic.
Memorial Hospital CEO Kerry Ashment denied the $18,000 rental amount, saying he had asked Mayor George to bring him a price that seemed reasonable.
Commissioner Sue Jones asked if hospital administrators had explored the possibility of simply donating the clinic to Hanna. CEO Kerry Ashment said he is responsible for ensuring the hospital doesn’t lose money and, as part of those duties, is working to determine an appropriate rental fee for the clinic.
Ashment said he doesn’t know how much the hospital should charge for rent, adding that he would prefer Mayor George to bring him a figure the town is comfortable paying.
Commissioner Sue Jones encouraged Ashment to consider giving the clinic to Hanna, similar to how the county donated its fire stations to the Carbon County Fire Protection District. She said it might not make financial sense for Memorial Hospital to continue owning the Hanna clinic.
Commissioner Jones noted that the Hanna clinic was never profitable and said that donating it would strengthen the hospital’s reputation in the town. Commission Vice Chairwoman Gwynn Bartlett added that giving the building away will save Memorial Hospital money.
The Board of Commissioners strongly encouraged Memorial Hospital to simply give the clinic to Hanna. CEO Kerry Ashment said he will continue working with Mayor Charlie George on a solution that benefits both the hospital and the town.
At Tuesday’s Hanna Town Council meeting, Mayor George said he would rather the town not own the clinic. The mayor added that regardless of the outcome, he simply wants residents to have access to local medical care again.
The Town Council expressed frustration with what they described as Memorial Hospital’s lack of communication regarding the Carbon County Family Practice Clinic in Hanna.
