A state legislative committee on Wednesday heard from supporters of a bill that would require hospitals to give 120 days notice before closing maternity wards.

Eleven birthing centers have closed in Maine since 2015 and, in some cases, hospitals did not provide a 120-day notice, which is a guideline by the Maine Department of Health and Human Services, but not a requirement.

Citing financial constraints, Houlton Regional Hospital closed its birthing center in May 2025 after giving one month’s notice. York Hospital shuttered its birthing center about two weeks after it publicly announced the closing in September 2023.

Financial problems at hospitals, Maine’s aging population and low birth rate, and the workforce shortage are factors that have led to the closing of maternity wards, experts say.

“This complexity doesn’t excuse a lack of transparency, planning or accountability,” said Dr. Anne Marie van Hengel, who testified in favor of the bill during a public hearing Wednesday and represents the Maine section of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. “When a birthing unit must close, there must be sufficient transition time.”

No one testified against the bill, LD 2189, during the hearing before the Health Coverage, Insurance and Financial Services committee. DHHS officials said during the hearing that the department supports the bill. The committee is scheduled to have a work session on the bill on Feb. 25.

Portia Judson, a nurse at Mount Desert Island Hospital, said patients were given three months’ notice before the birthing center there closed last year.

“While we still have a long way to go to address the closure of obstetrics units, this bill is a beginning,” said Judson, a member of the Maine State Nurses Association union, during the hearing. “The 120-day notice requirement will give health care workers, patients, communities and Maine policymakers time to ask questions about the cause of the closure, look for ways to prevent it, and make plans to address the harms of the closure.”

State Rep. Gary Friedmann, D-Bar Harbor, said during the hearing that the state should also look at ways to prevent the closure of birthing centers.

“The closure of these units begins a downward spiral in our communities,” Friedmann said. “When you take away health services, it becomes more difficult for people to live in those communities.”