Maryland Health Care Commission Approves Holy Cross Hospital’s Plan to Establish a New Hospital

Holy Cross Moves Toward Breaking Ground on Germantown Campus of Montgomery College

SILVER SPRING – MD — On January 20, the Maryland Health Care Commission issued a final decision approving a proposal from Holy Cross to establish the first new hospital in Montgomery County in more than 30 years. The approval of a Certificate of Need for the Holy Cross proposal on the Germantown campus of Montgomery College came after an extensive evaluation by Marilyn Moon, Ph.D., chair of the Commission.

“We are pleased that the Maryland Health Care Commission supported the recommendation of Dr. Moon and agreed that Holy Cross Hospital is the best choice to bring this much-needed expansion of health care to the residents of northern Montgomery County,” said Kevin J. Sexton, president and CEO of Holy Cross Hospital. “Our financing is in place for the new hospital.  We look forward to finishing our work to secure the required approvals so we can start construction as soon as possible.”

Dr. Moon conducted a lengthy comparative review of proposed new hospitals from Holy Cross for Germantown, and Adventist HealthCare for Clarksburg.  Dr. Moon found that the Adventist proposal failed to meet nine of the 31 applicable evaluation criteria, while the Holy Cross plan met all 48 applicable evaluation criteria. (Holy Cross Hospital was held to additional standards because its proposal, unlike Adventist HealthCare’s, included psychiatric beds.)

The Holy Cross Hospital proposal calls for a 93-bed general acute care hospital, with medical-surgical, obstetric and psychiatric services. By building the hospital on the campus of Montgomery College, the college and the hospital will establish a partnership of expanded training opportunities for future generations of health care workers.

The Commission today also approved a recommendation from Dr. Moon that Holy Cross be permitted to move forward with its plan to modernize and renovate its existing facility in Silver Spring.

For more information about Holy Cross Hospital, the proposed new hospital in Germantown, and the Silver Spring hospital project, contact Yolanda Gaskins at 301.754.7123 or email: gaskiy@holycrosshealth.org.

Holy Cross Hospital is the second largest hospital in Maryland. The hospital serves primarily the residents of Montgomery and Prince George’s Counties and is a member of Trinity Health of Novi, Michigan.