Alexa Liacko is a community journalist for CBS News Atlanta. She is passionate about telling impactful stories that highlight solution-makers and people spreading joy throughout Georgia.

For decades, St. Mary's Sacred Heart Hospital in Lavonia has been a cornerstone for expecting mothers in northeast Georgia. But tonight, the hospital's labor and delivery unit has officially shut down, leaving families scrambling and nurses without work.

Hospital officials say Medicaid cuts were the final straw after months of funding and staffing struggles.

The closure now forces pregnant women in Franklin County and surrounding areas to travel 45 minutes to an hour and a half to Athens or Greenville for maternity care -- a potentially dangerous distance in the event of a complicated or high-risk pregnancy.

Inside the hospital, staff members describe the mood as "shocked" and "heartbroken." Many learned about the labor and delivery unit closure only days before it became official.

For some, the announcement means unemployment. For others, it means working longer shifts to fill new gaps across remaining departments.

While St. Mary's Health Care System said it would help displaced employees find other roles within its network, not all nurses can relocate or afford the commute. Several are now weighing difficult decisions: stay in the community they love or leave Lavonia altogether to find work.

For patients, the uncertainty is even greater. Many in Lavonia and neighboring towns rely on Medicaid and limited transportation, making the new travel burden particularly heavy. In a region where poverty and distance already define access to healthcare, the loss of this unit threatens to widen the gap between rural and urban medical care.

This is not an isolated case. Across Georgia, rural hospitals are closing their doors or cutting services as costs climb.

According to state leaders, 9 rural hospitals have closed in the last decade, part of a nationwide trend leaving vast stretches of Georgia without maternal health resources.

National health advocates say these closures carry deadly consequences. When labor and delivery units shut down, expectant mothers must travel farther for care, increasing the risk of complications for both parent and child. It's a ripple effect that can devastate small towns like Lavonia -- where neighbors know one another, and hospitals are often the heart of the community.

St. Mary's said recruitment challenges and limited funding sources also played a role in the decision, noting that efforts to hire physicians and sustain the program stretched on for more than a year.

Now, as lights dim in the once-busy maternity wing, residents say the closure feels symbolic - another reminder of how fragile healthcare access can be in rural Georgia.

What was once a place where new life began is now another casualty of a healthcare system struggling to survive.

In a statement to CBS Atlanta, St. Mary's Sacred Heart Hospital said:

Lavonia Hospital closes labor and delivery unit, leaving rural families in crisis