The Atmore City Council has approved a resolution guaranteeing a new line of credit for Escambia County Alabama Community Hospitals Inc. (ECACH), the nonprofit that operates Atmore Community Hospital, as the facility works through a financial restructuring designed to secure its long-term future.
Resolution No. 2026-21, adopted during the council’s regular Monday meeting, commits both the city and the Poarch Creek Indians to guaranteeing a line of credit of up to $7 million from United Bank, funded in two installments with interest paid by the borrower under terms agreed between ECACH and the lender.
How the Financing Works
City Attorney Bill Wasden told council members the arrangement is a two-phase undertaking. “The first portion is a line of credit for $2.2 million, which has already been funded,” Wasden said. “Then it will go into a permanent phase, or a permanent loan, and that’ll be the balance of up to $7 million.”
Wasden said the Tribe could not have been more cooperative and supportive, noting that the Poarch Creek Indians have already executed their portion of the guarantee.
Bankruptcy Background
The credit line comes as ECACH works through a Chapter 9 bankruptcy filing announced July 9, a move intended to help the hospital restructure and keep healthcare services in Atmore while positioning the facility for long-term sustainability. A related lawsuit seeking financial information from the Escambia County Health Care Authority was dismissed shortly after the filing was announced.
USA Health took over day-to-day operations of Atmore Community Hospital in January, bringing the facility into the University of South Alabama’s health system network. The bankruptcy process gives ECACH an opportunity to address legacy financial obligations that accumulated under prior management while preserving access to care for residents of northern Escambia County and surrounding communities.
Local officials have described the hospital — one of Atmore’s largest employers — as essential to the city’s economic and physical well-being, and the city and Tribe’s joint guarantee underscores a broad local commitment to keeping its doors open.