The largest U.S. Department of Defense hospital abroad is pausing its labor and delivery services until further notice to focus on the needs of the conflict across the Middle East.
The Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, located near Ramstein Air Base in Germany, is temporarily referring some labor and delivery patients to other hospitals within the local community, hospital officials told Military Times on Thursday.
The medical center sent a notice about the halt in those services to Landstuhl patients through a Tuesday memorandum that circulated on the unofficial Air Force amn/nco/snco Facebook page.
“Our staff is in direct contact with impacted patients to provide additional information and facilitate a smooth transition to our healthcare partners,” center officials told Military Times in a statement.
The memo states that the closure of labor and delivery is due to the hospital’s “primary objective.”
Although the memo doesn’t elaborate on what that objective is, the hospital’s primary role in critical combat care is to treat patients that are injured during training or combat operations throughout Europe, Africa and the Middle East, according to the hospital’s website.
During the ongoing U.S. military operations in Iran, the hospital is expected to continue its role in combat care.
Six U.S. service members were killed in an attack by Iran on Sunday in Port Shuaiba, Kuwait. Others have been listed as “seriously wounded” by U.S. Central Command as Iran continues to strike U.S. military installations across the Middle East following the joint U.S.-Israeli attack.
CENTCOM said Monday that 18 troops were wounded thus far, a large increase from the five reported over the weekend.
Officials did not detail the extent of the injuries or whether the wounded service members were taken to any military hospitals in Germany or the U.S.
Landstuhl is the largest American medical facility outside the U.S., the only American College of Surgeons-verified level II trauma center overseas and the only U.S. trauma center associated with a foreign trauma network, according to a 2023 U.S. Army release on the center’s 70th anniversary.
The hospital will continue to see labor and delivery patients for prenatal appointments until 36 weeks, according to the memo, and patients that are further along than 36 weeks are urged to contact the hospital about what steps to take next.
The hospital’s labor and delivery unit utilizes nurses, midwives, obstetricians and medical technicians throughout a patient’s birth experience, according to its website.
Hospital officials told Military Times that patients are encouraged to contact the medical center’s patient advocate with questions they may have regarding their care.
“The decision-making occurred at a very high level and we are saddened we cannot provide your care,” the memo reads.
Hospital officials declined to comment on which office made the decision.
There is no current timeline for when labor and delivery services will resume, per the memo.
Cristina Stassis is a reporter covering stories surrounding the defense industry, national security, military/veteran affairs and more. She previously worked as an editorial fellow for Defense News in 2024 where she assisted the newsroom in breaking news across Sightline Media Group.
