In the past two days, two health systems have shared plans to build new children's hospitals.
Chapel Hill, N.C.-based UNC Health is drawing up plans for its flagship freestanding children's hospital, the system announced Sept. 26. The N.C. Children's Hospital is expected to cost more than $2 billion, and state lawmakers have already approved an initial investment of $320 million. The facility will be located in the state's Triangle Region — though no specific location has been chosen yet — and is expected to open in eight to 10 years.
Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital, first opened in 1956, will soon be rebuilt from the ground up. The hospital belongs to St. Louis-based SSM Health, which has been investing in other projects near Saint Louis University, including the construction of a new hospital in 2020 and the acquisition of the SLUCare Physician Group in 2022. The upgraded 14-story facility will be more spacious and offer "expanded and enhanced services," including a neonatal intensive care unit, intensive care unit, cancer, cardiology and dialysis care, the system said Sept. 28. Construction on the new Cardinal Glennon is expected to wrap by 2027.