STUART, Va. – The quest to find a new owner for a shuttered hospital in Patrick County has ended.

Pioneer Community Hospital closed its doors nearly two years ago after the loss of its last primary physician.

Patrick County leaders have been working to find a buyer for the region’s only hospital after the parent company filed for bankruptcy in 2017. At the urging of Southside state Sen. Bill Stanley, Governor Ralph Northam signed emergency legislation to extend the hospital’s license as the search for a buyer continued.

But community leaders in Patrick County have given up. They say the $5 million pricetag for Pioneer is too much for a hospital built in the 1960s.