Palo Verde Hospital Board to Vote on $1 Million County Loan, Six-Month Management Takeover

The Palo Verde Healthcare District Board of Directors will hold a special meeting Monday night to consider a proposed agreement with Riverside County that would provide $1 million in emergency funding and place the hospital under county-led management for approximately six months.

The meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. at the Blythe City Council Chambers. Riverside County supervisors are expected to discuss the same agreement at their Tuesday meeting, according to district officials.

Palo Verde Hospital, the only hospital serving Blythe and the surrounding eastern Riverside County region, has been operating under a fiscal emergency since June 2025 and filed for Chapter 9 bankruptcy on September 30, 2025. According to the loan agreement prepared for Monday's meeting, the hospital had approximately two days of cash on hand as of January 15.

District officials point to several factors that contributed to the financial crisis, including COVID-19 response costs, litigation in 2024, a cyber incident that halted billing for roughly 45 days, and the loss of key finance leadership. The district staff report mentioned that problems only escalated when a potential $6.1 million payment through the state's Voluntary Rate Range Program fell through on January 8 after the California Department of Health Care Services declined to accept the district's participation.

In order to help keep the hospital afloat, the City of Blythe approved a $330,000 emergency loan on January 9 to cover one payroll cycle. The district has been scrambling to secure long-term funding and cement a permanent solution since.

That’s when Riverside County made the six-month takeover offer to the district, along with a $1 million loan, which was distributed on January 16, with the understanding of a finalized agreement being made. Under the proposed deal, the county would lead a stakeholder "strike force" to stabilize and manage the emergency department for approximately 180 days while longer-term solutions are evaluated.

The loan carries a five-year term at 3% interest with quarterly payments beginning in October 2026.

Both the healthcare district board and the Riverside County Board of Supervisors must approve the agreement for it to take effect. It's unclear what the long-term future holds for the facility. The hospital's emergency room, ancillary services, and community clinic remain open.