Georgia greenlights $1.1B Wellstar hospital

The Georgia Department of Community Health has approved Wellstar Health System’s application to build a $1.1 billion hospital, the Marietta, Ga.-based health system confirmed to Becker’s Oct. 21.

The 230-bed Wellstar Kennestone Regional Medical Center at Acworth (Ga.) is expected to open in 2031.

Wellstar filed a certificate-of-need application in June for the eight-story, 675,000-square-foot facility, which will include 70 emergency department bays and eight operating rooms.

“Several competing health systems filed objections to Wellstar’s application related to this project,” a system spokesperson said in a statement shared with Becker’s. “However, none of those health systems have the commitment and existing operational abilities to meet the current and future medical needs of residents in Cobb, Paulding, Cherokee and Bartow counties and the future need for improved access to hospital services for the Acworth community.”

In its approval letter, the department said it expects the new hospital “will have a positive relationship to the existing healthcare delivery system in the service area,” according to Wellstar.

The project is expected to create more than 1,500 healthcare and related roles.

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