UPMC will invest $2B to build 3 specialty hospitals

The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center plans to invest $2 billion to build three "specialty hospitals" that include top-of-the-line technologies, the health system announced. 

The $2 billion is in addition to $1 billion already set aside by UPMC for capital improvements, the organization said.  

The three new facilities will be built near existing UPMC hospitals in Pittsburgh:

• UPMC Vision and Rehabilitation Hospital at UPMC Mercy
• UPMC Hillman Cancer Hospital at UPMC Shadyside Hospital
• UPMC Heart and Transplant Hospital at UPMC Presbyterian

UPMC Vision and Rehabilitation Hospital is projected to open in 2020, and Hillman Cancer Hospital will open in 2022. UPMC did not offer a timeline for the heart and transplant hospital. "UPMC is recognized around the world for pioneering treatments that are backed by groundbreaking research in an unparalleled care network," Jeffrey A. Romoff, UPMC's CEO, said in the announcement. "Our transformative vision will make available the most innovative treatments for cancer, heart disease, transplantation, diseases of aging, vision restoration and rehabilitation, among many others." 

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UPMC is not the only western Pennsylvania health plan investing significantly in capital improvements. Allegheny Health Network, operated by Highmark Health, announced last month that it would put $1 billion toward building a new state-of-the-art hospital and "neighborhood" hospitals and renovating existing facilities. 

Allegheny Health Network expects the construction, which is set to take place over the next few years, to create 800 new healthcare jobs in the Pittsburgh region. The centerpiece of the $1 billion investment is a 160-bed hospital in the city's Wexford suburb. 

RELATED: Geisinger Health System and Highmark announce plans to create a new community-based clinical network 

UPMC has also expanded its reach in the state over the past several months, including a high-profile merger with Harrisburg-based Pinnacle Health that extends UPMC's reach into central Pennsylvania. 

Romoff said in the announcement that UPMC will also be partnering with Microsoft as part of the venture. Microsoft will assist in the design of the three facilities as "digital hospitals of the future," he said. 

"We will apply technology in many ways that will transform what today is often a disjointed and needlessly complex experience for patients and clinicians," Romoff said.