Dive Brief:
- Ascension St. Thomas is investing more than $537 million in various projects across the middle of Tennessee, the Nashville-based health system announced last week.
- The investments will support new facilities, technology upgrades and expanded inpatient capacity in Tennessee’s Davidson, Rutherford and Montgomery counties.
- Ascension St. Thomas says the investments will reduce travel time for patients in the region by expanding care access and will support more advanced treatment options, including advanced diagnostics.
Dive Insight:
Some of the projects include include modernization and expansion efforts at hospitals in Davidson County, including those at emergency departments, inpatient and surgical units. Ascension will funnel “major investments” into Rutherford County at its main campus, St. Thomas Rutherford Hospital.
Ascension’s investments in Montgomery, which were previously announced, include $148.5 million to support a new hospital in Clarksville.
The new projects will be funded by tax-exempt bonds with state and local partners, Ascension St. Thomas said in a news release.
The regional nonprofit health system, which is owned by Catholic nonprofit health system Ascension, has been investing heavily in middle Tennessee as population booms drive increased demand for services.
In July, the health system announced it would invest $10 million to update the emergency department at Ascension St. Thomas Hospital West. The health system also received state approval to build two facilities — a rehabilitation and an inpatient hospital — in partnership with LifePoint Health in March.
Ascension as a whole spent $780.2 million on construction of capital projects during its first quarter of its 2026 fiscal year, ended Sept. 30.
