The St. David’s Emergency Center in Bee Cave closed Wednesday, one of three St. David’s HealthCare system locations that closed in the Austin-area.

Locations in Cedar Park and North Austin also have closed, hospital officials said.

The closures were made to reallocate resources, including doctors and nurses, to hospitals better equipped to handle patients with COVID-19, the disease linked to the coronavirus.

A woman in her 30s tested positive for the coronavirus at the Bee Cave free-standing emergency room in March.

Services provided at the Bee Cave location have been temporarily consolidated to St. David's South Austin Medical Center.

In addition, St. David’s Emergency Center-Cedar Park services were consolidated to St. David’s Round Rock Medical Center, 2400 Round Rock Ave. And staff from St. David’s Surgical Hospital in North Austin were moved to the adjacent St. David’s North Austin Medical Center.

Dr. Ken Mitchell, senior vice president and chief medical officer for St. David’s HealthCare, said the postponement of elective surgeries, per recommendations from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, has caused a significant decrease in patient volume at St. David’s Surgical Hospital. Additionally, mandatory stay-at-home orders in Travis and Williamson counties have caused emergency centers in Bee Cave and Cedar Park to experience reduced volumes.

"Given the dilution of the demand for these services, we have made the decision to redeploy the resources associated with each facility," Mitchell said. "There are a number of projection models indicating that, within a certain period of time, we will see surges in patient volume due to COVID-19. As we prepare for various scenarios, we are consolidating services to our hospitals and other care sites where they are needed most."

"St. David’s HealthCare remains dedicated to caring for the people of Central Texas," Mitchell said, "and will continue to provide health care to patients in the community through our network of hospitals, freestanding emergency centers and urgent care clinics."