SMYTH COUNTY, Va. — School-based health clinics serving thousands of students and staff across Southwest Virginia are slated to close ahead of the 2026-27 school year after the regional provider announced it is shuttering eight sites.
What’s closing and where
The closures affect schools in three systems: Smyth County, Washington County and the city of Bristol. The facilities include elementary, middle and high school clinics that district officials say provided quick access to care and kept students in class.
| School | District |
|---|---|
| Saltville Elementary School | Smyth County |
| Northwood Middle School | Smyth County |
| Chilhowie Elementary School | Smyth County |
| Chilhowie High School | Smyth County |
| John S. Battle High School | Washington County |
| High Point Elementary School | Washington County |
| Virginia Elementary School | Bristol |
| Virginia High School | Bristol |
District leaders sound the alarm
Smyth County Superintendent Brad Haga and Washington County Superintendent Keith Perrigan described the closures as a sudden, painful loss of services that did more than treat colds and minor injuries.
"It was a shot to the gut. It was a gut punch. It's really going to hurt us. These types of clinics keep our students in the classrooms and keep our employees at work," Haga said.
"We thought we'd come up with a pretty good plan on how we could do that. And then a week later, we found out that the program was going to be completely removed from our schools," Perrigan told News Channel 11.
Both superintendents pointed to high utilization. Perrigan said his system averaged about 80 visits per month and more than 800 visits over the school year, counting students and employees. Haga said the Chilhowie-area clinic at one point saw roughly 200 patients a month.
Why the closures are happening
Southwest Virginia Community Health Systems (SVCHS) said the decision followed a significant loss of revenue linked to the federal 340B program, which provides discounted medications for safety-net providers. SVCHS released a statement attributing the closures to that funding shortfall.
Local impact and next steps
District officials and community leaders are now scrambling to identify alternatives so students and staff do not lose access to timely care. Superintendents said they had been working with the health system to find efficiencies, only to be informed the program would be removed.
- Students may need to leave campus for routine visits previously handled on-site.
- Parents and employees could face increased travel and missed work hours for basic care.
- Districts will explore partnerships or emergency funding to restore services.
Rural school clinics have become a key part of the health-care safety net in Virginia, reducing missed instruction time and easing barriers to care where primary-care access is limited. The loss of these eight clinics underscores tensions between federal program changes and local service delivery in under-resourced regions.
Officials did not announce immediate replacement providers. Families seeking information about care options for students should contact their local school administration or the district offices in Smyth County, Washington County and Bristol.
As the new school year approaches, communities here will be watching whether state or charitable resources can fill the gap left by the program’s withdrawal and whether broader changes to 340B funding continue to reshape how rural clinics operate.
