News of Minnesota’s hospital crisis has spurred HCA-MN Legislative Policy Committee and Indivisible Healthcare Working Group activists to begin organizing community forums in distressed hospital areas, including Northfield, Little Falls-Brainerd, and Cloquet-Duluth. Indivisible organizations in these communities bring valuable local connections and credibility to the effort. Activists are already connecting with community members in the Cloquet-Duluth and Little Falls-Brainerd areas who want to help organize.
Federal Medicaid cuts are driving the crisis
This organizing comes as Minnesota hospitals face growing financial pressure from federal law H.R. 1, which cuts Minnesota Medicaid funding by $2 billion annually from Medical Assistance and MinnesotaCare. At their July 2 meeting, leaders of the Healthcare Working Group (HWG) of Twin Cities and St. Croix Valley Indivisibles joined Legislative Policy Committee activists to build public support for the Patient Centered Care (PCC) bill, which would reduce Minnesota’s $2 billion annual cut in Medicaid funding to $1 billion annually by eliminating private insurance administrative waste.
The crisis has received growing attention throughout 2026. On March 26, The Minnesota Daily reported that Hennepin County Medical Center (HCMC) could face a $1.7 billion loss over the next decade due to Medicaid cuts, unpaid care, debt, and service reductions.
On April 15, a Public Citizen analysis identified seven Minnesota hospitals at risk of closing, cutting services, or laying off workers, citing H.R. 1’s Medicaid cuts as a key driver. On April 20, FOX 9 aired a segment on the report, warning of a “big ugly threat” to Minnesota’s safety-net hospitals. Earlier, on April 13, the Minnesota Hospital Association warned of a systemwide crisis, reporting that 31 hospitals met formal financial distress criteria.
Rural Communities Take Action
Rural outreach began August 23 when HCA-MN allies, Minnesota COACT and Minnesota Farmers Union, co-sponsored the 45th Annual Farm Picnic in Pierz, 12 miles east of Little Falls. The area’s St. Gabriel’s Hospital has been identified by Public Citizen and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) as being at risk of closure, service cuts, or layoffs. The hospital has an operating margin of approximately -23.4%, compared with a state median of -2.3%, with H.R. 1’s Medicaid funding cuts adding to its sustained financial losses.
Rep. Robert Bierman (Appleton), co-chair of the Minnesota House Health Committee and a co-author of the PCC bill, joined former state representative Al Doty and Minnesota Farmers Union Board Member Linda Larson in addressing the rural hospital crisis at the Farm Picnic.
Don Pylkkanen, Co-Chair, Legislative & Policy Committee
Dave Garibaldi, Co-Chair, Legislative & Policy Committee