Here’s What the Chester-Crozer Closure Means for Expectant Parents in Delaware County

When Chester-Crozer Medical Center closed its doors in May 2025, Delaware County lost far more than a hospital—it lost its only trauma center, a highly regarded burn unit and a lifeline for thousands of families.

Just a month earlier, Taylor Hospital in Ridley Park had shut down. The result is what public health experts call a maternal and infant health care desert.

“The collapse of the Crozer Health System, which included Crozer-Chester, Taylor and Delaware County Memorial Hospitals, has left Delaware County with a devastating reality: We are now a maternity care desert,” says State Rep. Gina Curry. “In one of the most densely populated suburban-urban regions just outside Philadelphia, families, particularly Black and Brown families, face dangerously limited access to prenatal care and safe places to give birth.”

Today there are only two hospitals in the county: Mercy Fitzgerald in Lansdowne and Riddle Memorial in Media. For a population of nearly 575,000 people, these closures put a strain on the county’s health care system, making access to care—
especially for pregnant individuals and infants—more challenging.

“Access to healthcare and transportation are the biggest challenges for pregnant women,” says Joanne Craig, Chief Impact Officer for The Foundation for Delaware County. “Obstetrical care and delivery hospitals are farther away. Pregnant women are delivering their babies at home and in ambulances, not by choice but because they couldn’t get to the hospital quickly enough. Infants are at risk because currently there is no pediatric care in the City of Chester.”

Yet amid this crisis, community organizations like the Foundation are stepping up. The group has been offering support like the Nurse-Family Partnership, Healthy Start, a doula program and Delaware County WIC for more than 30 years.

Among the many new initiatives at the Delaware County Health Department is the Wellness of Wheels mobile health unit, which should deploy by the end of the month. They also partnered with Villanova and Temple to train Birth Companions who will be matched with pregnant county residents through Main Line Health.

In addition, March of Dimes is bringing its Supportive Pregnancy Care® program to the region through its partnership with Riddle Hospital. This model focuses on group-based prenatal care and creates an environment of peer support.

And on Oct. 25, Rep. Curry, State Sen. Tim Kearney partnered with the Foundation to host a Community Baby Shower, where families had access essential supplies—diapers, formula, cribs, car seats—and connected with social service providers.

“We cannot stand by and watch this crisis deepen,” Rep, Curry says. “Every mom and baby, no matter their race, income or ZIP code, deserves access to safe, respectful and high-quality care.”