BREAKING: River Hills Community Health Center to Close Centerville Clinic in Another Blow to Rural Health Care

DES MOINES, IA – Today, River Hills Community Health Center announced it will close its Centerville Clinic effective July 31st, 2026. The closure comes on the heels of other recent losses in Southeastern Iowa, including the closure of the MercyOne Ottumwa Family and Internal Medicine Clinic and the Richland Dental Clinic in Keokuk County. These closures result in longer drives, fewer options, delayed care, and more uncertainty for Iowa’s rural communities.

In its announcement, River Hills pointed to the ongoing financial and operational pressures facing rural health care providers across Iowa and the nation — including persistent workforce shortages, rising operational costs, reimbursement challenges, and the long-term sustainability struggles of rural health services.

“How many more clinics have to close, workers laid off, and services lost before the people in charge admit the system is broken and get to work fixing it?” said candidate for governor Rob Sand. “This is the third clinic closure in Southeastern Iowa this year — and it’s happening after government insiders voted for a budget bill that threatens health care for 110,000 Iowans and put rural hospitals at risk, all while Iowa’s privatized Medicaid systems have led to more denials of care. Enough is enough. It’s time for change.” 

Iowa’s rural communities are facing a growing physician shortage — a report last fall revealed that for at least the next twelve years, rural communities across the country will only have two-thirds of the primary care doctors they require, and 92% of rural counties are considered primary care professional shortage areas. The result is what we’re seeing now: fewer clinics, longer drives for care, and rural Iowans paying the price.