Palo Verde Hospital CEO Steps Down Amid Reorg

Palo Verde Hospital’s chief executive, Sandra Anaya, is leaving this week as Riverside County takes a tighter grip on the Blythe facility’s operations. (riversiderecord.org) Jennifer Cruikshank, chief executive of Riverside University Health System Medical Center and Clinics, is set to step in on an interim basis. Anaya said in her resignation letter that Cruikshank would lead during the transition. (riversiderecord.org) The change comes about two months after the Palo Verde Healthcare District board approved a management services agreement with Riverside County. That deal put Riverside University Health System in charge of day-to-day hospital operations starting in February. (riversiderecord.org) Palo Verde Hospital has been under financial strain for months. The district approved a 60-day emergency reorganization plan in June 2025 after the hospital stopped admitting patients, then filed for Chapter 9 bankruptcy in October 2025. (riversiderecord.org 1) (riversiderecord.org 2) County officials have also been moving to change who governs the hospital. In September 2025, the Riverside County Local Agency Formation Commission began the process of dissolving the Palo Verde Healthcare District and looking for a successor agency. (riversiderecord.org) That process is still active. The commission discussed next steps again in April 2026 after voting the month before to dissolve the district, while Executive Officer Gary Thompson said the move did not mean the hospital would close. (riversiderecord.org) The hospital serves Blythe, a remote city near the Arizona border, and county supervisors have treated keeping it open as a regional access issue. In October 2025, the Board of Supervisors approved a $181,467 advance in property tax revenue to help keep operations going. (riversiderecord.org) The district also sought outside financing while trying to stabilize cash flow. In January 2026, it announced a $4 million loan tied to participation in a state funding program. (riversiderecord.org) Cruikshank is taking over from outside the district’s usual chain of command. Riverside University Health System describes itself as Riverside County’s safety-net provider, and its media materials list Cruikshank as chief executive of the medical center and clinics. (ruhealth.org 1) (ruhealth.org 2) For now, the leadership handoff leaves county officials overseeing both the hospital’s daily management and the longer fight over who will run it permanently. Anaya’s exit moves that shift from financial oversight into the chief executive’s office. (riversiderecord.org)