Llano hospital rebranded following Mid Coast departure
Llano Regional Hospital, 200 W. Ollie St. in Llano. Photo by Brittany Osbourn
As of April 1, Mid Coast Medical Center-Central is Llano Regional Hospital. The name change came after Llano County assumed control of the healthcare facility following a mutual separation agreement with Mid Coast Health System, which had operated the hospital since 2020.
Llano County and Mid Coast solidified their separation March 10 following months of disputes over the hospital’s financial viability. Llano Regional Hospital, 200 W. Ollie St. in Llano, is owned by Llano County, governed by the Llano County Hospital Authority Board, and managed by CEO Hatch Smith Jr.
“This transition is more than a name change,” said Smith in a Tuesday media release. “We are resetting, reinforcing, and making sure our residents have the best primary, specialty, emergency, inpatient, and post-inpatient care possible, close to family and friends.”
Smith was also CEO of the hospital when it was still Mid Coast Medical Center-Central, but he was furloughed from his position along with 11 other employees in December 2024 in a large, unexpected cut made by Mid Coast to save on costs. Smith reportedly offered to work for no pay after his furlough.
The hospital will maintain its services and likely expand them, according to the media release. It will keep its “critical access” hospital designation, opening up paths to federal funding and support.
“These are challenging times for rural healthcare, but we are committed to making sure our communities have access to local healthcare, when they need it,” said Pat McDowell, president of the Llano County Hospital Authority Board. “We don’t want any of our friends or neighbors to have to travel to Burnet or Fredericksburg or even farther to Austin for a doctor’s visit, physical therapy session, or more intensive inpatient care when we can provide it right here in Llano.”
The Hospital Authority Board is made up of seven volunteers appointed by the Llano County Commissioners Court to oversee hospital operations.
The Llano-area hospital, also known as Llano Memorial Hospital, has existed in some form since 1957 and serves residents of Llano, San Saba, Mason, Cherokee, Kingsland, and the unincorporated areas in and surrounding Llano County.