Although the pandemic stalled some hospital construction projects this year, many healthcare organizations continued facility enhancements and expansions.
Below, Becker's Hospital Review provides a breakdown of seven of the most expensive building projects that were announced, advanced or completed in 2020. All have price tags above $1.5 billion.
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
Cost: $3.4 billion
Project: Children's Hospital of Philadelphia is planning a campuswide expansion that includes building a 22-story patient tower and redeveloping of a site. The new patient tower, which will have 300 beds and space for 200 more, is expected to open in 2027. The hospital also invested in redeveloping the Philadelphia Convention Hall and Civic Center with the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.
UC Davis Medical Center (Sacramento)
Cost: $1.9 billion
Project: UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento, Calif., plans to invest $1.9 billion in expansion and renovation projects. Some of the largest projects in the 10-year development plan include a 1.15-million-square-foot addition for a satellite campus in Sacramento, a new 800,000-square-foot hospital tower and a 57,000-square-foot ambulatory surgery center. With the projects, UC Davis Medical Center is expected to increase its building square footage from 3.5 million to 6.2 million. The new medical center tower will have at least 200 inpatient beds; the new ASC will have 270 exam rooms.
Ohio State University's Wexner Medical Center (Columbus)
Cost: $1.79 billion
Project: Ohio State University plans to build a new flagship facility for Wexner Medical Center. The hospital will be a 1.9 million-square-foot facility with 26 stories and up to 820 beds. Construction is slated to end in 2026.
Harborview Medical Center (Seattle)
Cost: $1.74 billion
Project: Harborview Medical Center's planning group recommended a plan to invest $1.74 billion in upgrades. Voters in the tax district approved a bond for the upgrades Nov. 3. The medical center seeks to build a $952 million tower, $79 million behavioral health center and other renovations to ensure the building meets earthquake-resistance requirements.
Indiana University Health (Indianapolis)
Cost: $1.6 billion
Project: IU Health plans to build a hospital in downtown Indianapolis. Plans call for the construction of three distinct towers, which would hold up to 576 private patient beds as well as space for outpatient care and medical education. The hospital will be south of IU Health's Methodist Hospital.
Harbor-UCLA Medical Center (West Carson, Calif.)
Cost: $1.6 billion
Project: Harbor-UCLA Medical Center is embarking on a $1.6 billion upgrade that includes a 468,000-square-foot inpatient tower with 346 beds and an emergency department for psychiatric patients. It also includes a 198,000-square-foot outpatient building.
University of California San Francisco
Cost: $1.5 billion
Project: UC San Francisco plans to build a $1.5 billion replacement hospital by 2030 for the out-of-date San Francisco-based Moffitt-Long Hospitals. Under state law, patient care at Moffitt had to be moved to meet seismic code requirements. The replacement facility is part of a revitalization project for UCSF's Parnassus Heights campus. The hospital in July selected architects for the hospital.