Rumours that our local hospital in Canowindra may be closing are not true, the Minister for Health, Jillian Skinner, has confirmed. The fears of closure were addressed by Member for Orange, Andrew Gee in a letter to the Minister on behalf of Dr O’Ryan. The Hon Ms. Skinner said “the District is committed to the ongoing delivery of 24 hours, seven days per week services at Canowindra Soldiers Memorial Hospital and there are no plans to close the facility… I understand that the Hospital has experienced recent success treating patients in an Ambulatory Care setting. This has resulted in reducing both admissions and length of stay, freeing up beds for the community requiring inpatient healthcare.”