Boston Children's Hospital's $1 billion expansion of its main campus is in progress, and on July 1 it aired another expansion plan: a $435 million push into the city's southern and western suburbs.
The project is in planning stages and still needs state approval. Boston Children's intends to file a Determination of Need application for the renovation of space within Boston Children's existing facility in Waltham; the leasing, construction, fitting and equipping of a building located in Weymouth; and land acquisition, construction, fitting and equipping of an ambulatory surgical center in Needham.
The expansion comes in addition to the hospital's construction of a new $1 billion clinical building on its campus in the Longwood area of Boston, which will add 71 beds to its 404. The last phase of that project is set for the first quarter of 2024.
Boston Children's expansion into the suburbs is like that of Mass General Brigham, in that the systems are moving specialty care and surgeries from their dense urban hubs to facilities that are more accessible for suburban families, according to The Boston Globe.
Kevin Churchwell, MD, president and CEO of Boston Children's, told the Globe that the goal is for most families to be within 20 minutes of a primary care physician or specialist in the hospital's network, which includes 677 physicians across the state.