Community Health & Wellness

Rehab and physical therapy clinic in Port Orchard closing

Virginia Mason Franciscan Health confirmed Monday that it will close its outpatient rehabilitation and physical therapy clinic in Port Orchard next month.

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St. Michael Medical Center President Chad Melton said the clinic is no longer financially viable given current insurance reimbursement rates, especially for Medicaid. The office plans to close July 12.

The care of about 50 patients will transfer as a result of the closure, VMFH said. Patients will be sent to St. Anthony Hospital in Gig Harbor, Franciscan Orthopedics or The Doctors Clinic in Silverdale and VMFH Medical Pavilion in Bainbridge Island, among others.

Virginia Mason Franciscan Health Port Orchard Medical Clinic at 450 South Kitsap Blvd. Photo by Conor Wilson

The closure impacts seven staff members. VMFH said it will work with each person on a transition and placement plan with area providers, including some of its own facilities.

“We are committed to doing everything we can to support impacted patients and team members in a smooth transition plan,” Melton said.

The clinic at 450 South Kitsap Blvd. will continue to offer other specialty care, including orthopedic, cardiology and urology, Melton said. It will also remain open for primary, urgent care, radiology and laboratory services.  

VMFH previously shuttered outpatient therapy services at four other Puget Sound locations in 2022. That included services at St. Michael Medical Center in Silverdale and a clinic on Kimball Road in Gig Harbor. SMMC still offers pediatric therapy services.

Conor Wilson is a Murrow News fellow, reporting for Gig Harbor Now and the Bremerton-based newspaper Kitsap Sun, through a program managed by Washington State University.