Rural maternity care in Virginia is shrinking — and fast.

In this week’s episode of The Cardinal: News of Virginia, host Lisa Rowan sits down with health care reporter Emily Schabacker to unpack the closure of the obstetrics and gynecology department at Centra Southside Community Hospital in Farmville. It’s the latest in a troubling trend: since 2018, five rural labor and delivery units have shut down across the Commonwealth, leaving only seven of Virginia’s 28 rural hospitals still offering obstetrics care after December 19.

Emily breaks down what’s driving these cuts, from long-standing financial pressures to the pandemic-era challenges that pushed hospitals to rely on costly traveling providers. She explains how low birth numbers, staffing shortages, and shifting healthcare economics have made it harder for rural communities to maintain access to safe, local maternity care.

What does this mean for families in Farmville and across rural Virginia? And what are the long-term consequences when essential services disappear from local hospitals?

We dig into the data, the context, and the human impact behind the headlines.