The new facility will include behavioral health and position the state as a national leader.
Chapel Hill, N.C. – UNC Health is proud to announce plans for the new N.C. Children’s Hospital, a partnership with the state that will help improve the health of children and adolescents across North Carolina.
The freestanding children’s hospital would be the first of its kind in North Carolina, providing the highest levels of care to children without having to leave the state. This state’s flagship children’s hospital will offer families in North Carolina access to a facility comparable in clinical and academic scale to any of the top children’s hospitals in the country. A child and adolescent psychiatric hospital would be located within the children’s hospital.
“This is a monumental partnership for our state’s healthcare future,” said Dr. Wesley Burks, CEO of UNC Health and Dean of the UNC School of Medicine. “The state’s initial investment of $320 million in a new flagship children’s hospital demonstrates state leaders’ dedication to providing innovative healthcare solutions for children and families across North Carolina.
“As the state of North Carolina’s healthcare system, our ability to fulfill our mission is strengthened through the investments in this year’s budget,” Burks added.
Next steps include finding the best location for the new hospital in the Triangle region, continuing to design the hospital and starting a philanthropic fundraising campaign. The goal will be to open the new hospital in the next 8-10 years.
In addition to providing the latest medical care and innovative behavioral health services, the new hospital will drive statewide economic development as it is expected to have a total project cost in excess of $2 billion, and will help create thousands of jobs. The new hospital would be separate from a new behavioral health hospital for children and adolescents that UNC Health and the state plan to open later this year in Butner.
“We are thrilled that state leaders are investing in a North Carolina Children’s Hospital, which will expand access to critical healthcare for all children and families across the state,” said Dr. Stephanie Duggins Davis, Physician-in-Chief at UNC Children’s. “These investments will transform the care of children across the state, ensure a healthier future for North Carolina’s children and shape the future of behavioral healthcare for all children by providing the highest level of comprehensive care and improving health outcomes for future generations.”
UNC Health applauds state lawmakers for other initiatives in the state budget that will help improve medical care for all North Carolinians, including Medicaid expansion and funding for NC Care, a new collaboration between the UNC System Office, UNC Health and ECU Health addressing health disparities throughout rural North Carolina.
About UNC Health
UNC Health is a state entity and an affiliated enterprise of the University of North Carolina system, comprised of 15 hospitals, 19 hospital campuses and more than 900 clinics along with the clinical patient care programs of the UNC School of Medicine (SOM).
It exists to improve the health and well-being of North Carolinians and others we serve and to further the teaching mission of the University of North Carolina SOM. UNC Health provided more than $141 million in Charity Care in fiscal year 2022, and more than $522 million over the last five years. Our hospitals have received numerous awards and recognition for quality care, patient safety and the overall patient experience. For more information, please visit unchealth.org.
About UNC Health
As a top-tier academic medical center, UNC Children’s upholds a mission to promote the health of all children in an inclusive, equitable culture through compassionate, family-centered care, tireless advocacy, scientific discovery, and education of future leaders.
Our nearly 350 physicians and providers are clinical and research faculty of the UNC School of Medicine, their medical expertise spanning nearly 50 programs in the School of Medicine’s 20 clinical departments, including 15 divisions in the UNC Department of Pediatrics. They are joined by more than 1,800 clinical staff, all dedicated to providing exemplary, compassionate care to the thousands of children we treat each year.