DEXTER, Maine — Northern Light Health announced last week it will close its Dexter internal medicine location on Sept. 30.
The closure is a "difficult decision," according to Northern Light. An aging building and high costs to repair led the company to search for a new location. However, no suitable building was found.
Dexter Town Manager Trampas King said he has been hearing frustration and concern from his constituents.
"Older residents who have been going there for years and decades are the most upset," King said. "I don't blame them now that they have to travel."
Northern Light Health said patients can find care at any of their other locations, noting there are seven within a 25-mile radius.
The added distance is something John Gale, a senior research associate of rural health care at the University of Southern Maine, said can be a challenge for patients.
"What this likely means is either they are going to have to absorb the burden of travel or see their provider less," Gale said.
King estimates there are 1,400 patients at the Dexter site. One of those patients is Herb Greenberg, who feels fortunate that at age 89 he can still drive, knowing many are not so fortunate.
"It’s a tough, tough scene for a lot of people," Greenberg said.
Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, announced this week $500,000 in funding to bolster rural health care in Maine. Gale said telehealth might be a good option.
"There are still times when you really need to see a patient," Gale said. "But if you're doing a follow-up on a medication, can you use telehealth to do that in a way that they may not be using now."