Fitzgibbon Hospital and The Living Center Announce Chapter 11 Filing and Private Sale to Strengthen Long-Term Sustainability

April 21, 2026

                Fitzgibbon Hospital in Marshall, Mo., a trusted independent rural hospital which has served Saline County and the surrounding area for more than 100 years, today announced that it has voluntarily filed for protection under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code and has secured a partner for sale of the facility. This step is intended to stabilize the hospital’s financial position while ensuring uninterrupted care for patients. It also will preserve access to essential healthcare services in the communities it serves.

                Hospital leadership emphasizes that the Chapter 11 process will allow Fitzgibbon Hospital and The Living Center to continue normal operations without disruption. The hospital remains open, employees continue to be paid, and patients and residents will continue to receive the same high-quality care from its physicians, nurses and non-clinical staff.

                “Our priority is, and always will be, the health and well-being of the communities we serve,” said Angy Littrell, President and Chief Executive Officer. “Filing for Chapter 11 gives us the time and structure needed to address financial challenges while continuing to provide the critical services our patients and residents depend on every day.”

                Like many rural hospitals across the country, Fitzgibbon Hospital has faced increasing financial pressures in recent years, including rising operating costs, workforce shortages and reimbursement at less than cost from non-negotiable governmental payers like Medicare and Medicaid and non-payment or underpayment for services provided from commercial insurers. As a private not-for-profit hospital, the only revenues Fitzgibbon receives is from the services it provides and from donations.

After carefully evaluating all available options and consulting with healthcare advisory firms specializing in complex restructuring situations, as well as attorneys, the organizations’ Board of Trustees and management determined the Chapter 11 filing in concert with a proposed sale was the best path forward. Prior to the decision to pursue a sale, the hospital engaged in the marketplace via a company that pairs at-risk, not-for-profit organizations with suitable partners.

                “These actions allow us to maintain services and explore opportunities for long-term sustainability,” said Board of Trustees President Bud Summers, adding that the evaluation process had been ongoing for more than a year and included discussions with logical regional and national hospital partners.

In the last three years the hospital has undertaken a series of expense-reduction measures to combat rising costs, including the closure of its Intensive Care Unit, inpatient Behavioral Health Unit, Home Health and Hospice agencies, chiropractic clinic and ceasing operations at two primary care Rural Health Clinics in Fayette, Mo., and Brunswick, Mo. and elimination of executive leadership positions. The service contractions resulted in staff layoffs in those and several other service areas, said Littrell. In all, those returned significant annual savings.

Most recently, in an effort to monetize idle assets, the hospital has an approximate 44-acre parcel of land adjacent to the hospital campus under contract for sale.

                Fitzgibbon will continue to operate its acute care hospital including its 24/7 Emergency Department, its core services and long-term care facility, The Living Center. Leadership’s primary goal is retaining access to critical healthcare services in the community.

                Patients with appointments for office visits or procedures should keep them and arrive as instructed. Fitzgibbon leadership encourages the community to continue to seek care at the hospital as needed.

                “I want to assure the community that our doors remain open, and we will continue to focus on offering quality health care while we work through this period. Our hope is to continue to provide healthcare for the next 100 years, and we appreciate the continued support of our employees, medical staff, patients, volunteers and the broader community who know how vital Fitzgibbon is to the economy and health of our area.” said Littrell. “Without patients, we have no hospital.”

                For updates and additional information, please visit www.fitzgibbon.org or contact Richard DeFord, Manager of Marketing and Spiritual Care, at 660-831-3235.