九色视频

The Maryland Health Care Commission鈥檚 Jan. 18 approval of the hospital system鈥檚 application is launching a flurry of activity in further developing the new medical center.

For now, the hospital system is 鈥渆agerly鈥� awaiting approval from the Maryland Health Services Cost Review Commission on UM Shore Regional Health鈥檚 full rate application in the coming months 鈥� the final regulatory approval needed to move the regional medical center project forward, said Trena Williamson, UM Shore Regional Health鈥檚 director of communications and marketing.

The hospital system is continuing work with the state, Talbot County and the Town of Easton to refine and approve site and building plans. Work is also ongoing with the project architects to refine and finalize facility design, Williamson said.

Site work at the new regional medical center鈥檚 location off of Longwoods Road is planned for this spring. Construction is anticipated to begin in spring 2025, with doors tentatively opening in summer 2028.

Project updates, including plans, upcoming milestones and photos, will be available to the community in a new section on UM Shore Regional Health鈥檚 website in the next several weeks, Williamson said.

Ken Kozel, UM Shore Regional Health鈥檚 president and CEO, said he was grateful for the hard work and dedication of the University of Maryland Medical System, the local hospital system, elected officials and the community in securing state funding and certificate of need approval.

鈥淭he level of detail, forward thinking and planning required to usher in a facility like this for our community to utilize well into the future has been monumental. I am proud of the work thus far,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ringing a project of this magnitude and complexity to fruition will require continued perseverance by all involved.鈥�

As the hospital system moves into the next phase of the project, Kozel said he鈥檚 looking forward to sharing more details in the months ahead as they are finalized.

鈥淚 encourage our community to follow the progress and stay involved,鈥� he said.

Development of the new hospital is a project Mid-Shore residents and local officials have closely followed for over a decade. Many have questions on what improvements the new hospital will bring, how it will be funded and what work remains to be done in bringing the long-proposed vision to reality.

CERTIFICATE OF NEED

Although plans for the new hospital have been in the works for over a decade, the official green light to further development and begin construction was only recently received through the approval of the certificate of need.

Attaining that certificate required approval from Maryland Health Care Commission鈥檚 Certificate of Need program, a state regulatory process designed to ensure that new health care facilities and services are developed only as needed.

If the commission determines a project is needed, it鈥檚 tasked with ensuring the project is cost-effective, geographically and financially accessible, financially viable and that it will not have a negative impact on other health care facilities and services.

The certificate is required to build a new health care facility, to move an existing facility to a new location, to change the bed capacity of a facility, to change the type or scope of any health care service offered or to make a health care facility capital expenditure that exceeds the threshold established in Maryland statute.

UM Shore Regional Health, formerly known as Shore Health System, first began looking at alternatives for the hospital project in the latter half of the 2000s, keeping the five-county area鈥檚 growing and aging population and a lack of physicians in mind.

The need for a new hospital stemmed from a number of concerns with the existing building, which the hospital system called 鈥渇unctionally obsolete for inpatient care鈥� in its application for the certificate.

Easton鈥檚 original 32-bed hospital opened its doors in 1907. Just eight years later in 1915, a new hospital was built on South Washington Street.

Though a small portion of the hospital built in 1915 is still a part of the current complex, the building has expanded, with the current structure including components updated throughout the last 100 years, according to the application.

A number of areas were considered for the site of the new hospital over the years, including locations in Queen Anne鈥檚 County, a site near Chesapeake College in Wye Mills and a parcel off of Route 322 at Oxford Road.

Redevelopment and renovations of the existing hospital campus were also considered.

Surveys conducted early on in the project planning process made it clear that an accessible location was important to residents in the community; however, 鈥渘o general agreement鈥� on the most accessible location emerged, according to the application.

Ultimately, replacing the hospital off of Longwoods Road in Easton was determined to be the most cost-effective from the start, according to the 2012 application.

The commission considers eight criteria in its review of applications for the certificate, including the state health plan, need, viability of a project proposal, impact on existing providers, availability of more cost-effective services, health equity and an applicant鈥檚 character and competence, according to the Maryland Health Care Commission.

The hospital system submitted its first application for the certificate for a new hospital off of Longwoods Road in Easton in September 2012. The application was docketed for formal review by the commission but was suspended due to financial concerns at the time.

A modified application for the project was submitted by the hospital system in October 2016, which was also docketed for formal review. But in July 2018, that application was withdrawn due to significant project changes after docketing.

Another certificate of need application for a similar hospital project on the same site was filed in September 2018, but review was deferred at the request of UM Shore Regional Health.

九色视频 on the new hospital remained relatively quiet until January 2023, when the latest application was filed with the Maryland Health Care Commission. Just over a year later, on Jan. 18, the certificate was approved.

WHAT鈥橲 IN STORE

The new regional medical center will sit on more than 200 acres of land off of Longwoods Road, adjacent to the Talbot County Community Center and just north of the Easton Airport.

The new location is about 3陆 miles from the existing hospital, which is tucked into downtown Easton on Washington Street. The move puts the new hospital closer to U.S. Route 50, providing greater visibility, easier and safer access for ambulances and helicopters and more parking 鈥� over 1,100 spaces.

Sketch site plans for the hospital, which were approved by the Easton Planning Commission late last year, indicate that access to the hospital from Route 50 will be via Medical Center Drive, a new road to be developed near the existing entrance to the Talbot County Community Center.

Residents who frequently travel Route 662 will see some changes to their usual route 鈥� a portion of Longwoods Road will be relocated as a ring road around the new hospital, the site of which sits in the middle of existing Route 662.

The hospital system is working with the State Highway Administration on plans and approvals needed to relocate the road.

Physical road work, along with rough grading of the project site to prepare for construction in spring 2025, are anticipated to begin in late summer to early fall of this year, Williamson said.

The main hospital tower is proposed as a six-level, 325,000-square-foot building with 147 licensed beds in private rooms. That number includes 110 acute care beds and 12 special hospital rehabilitation beds, both of which are classified as inpatient beds, and 25 observation beds.

What鈥檚 proposed is a change from the current hospital, which has 146 licensed beds in mostly semi-private rooms. The existing facility has significant excess physical capacity compared to its licensed bed capacity, according to the application, which creates 鈥渙peration and cost inefficiencies.鈥�

The new hospital will see an increase in the number of licensed medical, surgical, gynecological and addictions beds and psychiatric beds, though the number of licensed obstetric, pediatric and rehabilitation beds is lower than the licensed capacity at the existing hospital.

The new hospital is slated to have 27 emergency department treatment spaces, two of which are designated as psychiatric exam spaces, and three rooms designated as psychiatric holding areas for patients awaiting admission decisions.

Seven operating rooms are proposed 鈥� an addition of one from the current hospital.

A ground level helipad will be located outside of the emergency department at the new location.

The current hospital has a rooftop helipad, but it鈥檚 too small to accommodate Maryland State Police helicopters, meaning those patients must be taken by ground to the hospital after the helicopter lands at the airport, according to the application.

Adjacent to the hospital, a 60,000-square-foot medical office and outpatient services building is proposed.

FUNDING

The new regional medical center is estimated to cost $539.5 million.

Over half of the project 鈥� $333 million 鈥� is proposed to be funded through debt financing.

The state government is another significant source of funding.

Gov. Wes Moore鈥檚 fiscal year 2025 capital budget, released Jan. 17, proposes allocating $20 million every year for the next three fiscal years and adding a $30 million allocation in fiscal year 2028.

The recently proposed state funding for the regional medical center adds on to the $10 million received in the state鈥檚 fiscal year 2024 budget, which must be spent by the end of June.

About $39 million in cash flow from operations, $50 million in philanthropic gifts and approximately $18 million in investment earnings on bond proceeds during construction compose the remainder of the project鈥檚 funding.

The proposed mix of cash flows, debt, philanthropy and state support are consistent with the University of Maryland Medical System鈥檚 鈥渉istorical approach to funding large, systemwide strategic initiatives,鈥� according to the application for the certificate.