(Washington, DC) – Today, Mayor Muriel Bowser and Universal Health Services (UHS) announced multiple milestones in the development of a new hospital at St. Elizabeths East in Ward 8, including award of the hospital design and engineering contract and the location of the first of two new urgent care centers to be located in Wards 7 and 8. In addition, Mayor Bowser announced a four-year award from the DC Workforce Investment Council to the DC Hospital Association for a DC Works Healthcare Workforce Partnership Grant that will develop heath careers training opportunities for those interested in careers in the healthcare industry.
“We know that what this new state-of-the-art hospital and its supporting services will mean to our residents – it represents hope and the promise of better care and health outcomes,” said Mayor Bowser. “We look forward to working with all of our partners to keep moving these critical projects forward so that together we can continue to transform our health care system while creating jobs and opportunities for small business.”
UHS will award the multi-million dollar architecture and engineering contract for the new $375 million full service hospital to the team of HOK/McKissack & McKissack, two of the largest and most prestigious national and local firms in their fields. In addition, the team of HOK/McKissack & McKissack will invest 40% of the design and engineering with local CBEs, supporting District businesses.
With the design team in place, UHS and the District will move into the next phase of the project, which includes planning for the new hospital and ambulatory center's design, community engagement as required under the agreement, and the selection of a construction management team. The project currently remains on schedule with the facilities slated to open in late 2024.
“UHS has a longstanding history of constructing and developing healthcare facilities across the country, including for both acute care and ambulatory services,” said Marc D. Miller, CEO and President, Universal Health Services. “We are confident that with our substantial experience and the firms we have chosen as partners in architecture, design and engineering - we are well-positioned to create facilities that are designed with patient and employee experience and service at top of mind. We look forward to breaking ground on these significant and important projects as we work to advance healthcare throughout the District of Columbia.”
The District’s plan to develop a new hospital at St. Elizabeths East and improve the District-wide system of care included the development of two new urgent care centers in Wards 7 and 8 by UHS. Today, Mayor Bowser also announced that UHS has signed a letter of intent with Chapman Development, LLC at their Maple View Flats property in Ward 8 to open a new urgent care center later this year. The Center would include basic lab services and imaging and provide standard urgent care outpatient services to all District residents. The location of the second urgent care facility, to be located in Ward 7, will be announced this spring and is slated to open in 2022.
“We are thrilled to have our site selected in Ward 8 for the development and launch of our urgent care center later this year,” said Kimberly Russo, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of The George Washington University Hospital. “Together, with the District of Columbia Government, we worked diligently to identify a location that would help in bringing vital health services to this region of our great city. Through the opening of this urgent care center east of the Anacostia River, we are making important progress on improving health access, equity and outcomes in the nation’s capital.”
“Mayor Bowser has challenged us to deliver retail and neighborhood serving amenities in Historic Anacostia that will improve the quality of life and provide opportunities for its residents, and this new urgent care center builds on our previous success in meeting that challenge,” said Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development John Falcicchio. “Something is happening in Historic Anacostia: this urgent care center will join the Starbucks operating at Maple View Flats, which sits across from Reunion Square, a mixed-use project yielding jobs, affordable housing, and the future home of DC Health. We thank Chapman Development for its work to bring the urgent care center to Historic Anacostia helping us answer Mayor Bowser’s challenge.”
Finally, DC Works, the District’s Workforce Investment Council, awarded the Fiscal Year 2021 Healthcare Workforce Partnership Grant to the DC Hospital Association Program Services Company, Inc. (DCHAPSCI). The $250,000/year grant, awarded for up to four years, allows DCHAPSCI to serve as a Healthcare Sector Intermediary and mobilize employers, training providers, and other support organizations to champion a market-driven workforce development program. The goal of the grant is to increase the number of District residents employed in the healthcare industry and to meet the staffing needs of employers in areas such as hospitals, managed care organizations, private insurers, and other healthcare providers. Additional information about the grant is available here.
“The health sector in the District is a recognized economic driver and creating an environment that ensures we have a pipeline of residents for in demand positions is critical,” said Jacqueline D. Bowens, President of the DCHAPSCI. “We look forward to engaging the District’s entire healthcare industry as The Partnership identifies opportunities for careers in healthcare that will inform investments in a trained and skilled workforce.”
About Universal Health Services
One of the nation’s largest and most respected providers of hospital and healthcare services, Universal Health Services, Inc. (UHS) has built an impressive record of achievement and performance, growing since its inception into a Fortune 500 corporation. Headquartered in King of Prussia, PA, UHS has 90,000 employees, including 3,000 in Washington, D.C. Through its subsidiaries, UHS operates 26 acute care hospitals, 328 behavioral health facilities, 42 outpatient facilities and ambulatory care access points in 37 U.S. states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the United Kingdom.
About HOK/ McKissack & McKissack
The team of HOK/McKissack & McKissack holds a healthcare portfolio of over $500 million in healthcare volume and has completed recent work including the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, the District of Columbia’s Forensics Lab, the new medical expansion for the National Institutes of Health, the Tubman Quad Redevelopment at Howard University and the George Washington University Corcoran Hall. Outside the region, their recent work includes New York Presbyterian Hospital, the Harlem Hospital Center Modernization and the new Medical Center at Indiana University Health.