Tallahassee (Fla.) City Commissioners accepted a proposed memorandum of understanding between the city and Florida State University that would convert a city‑owned hospital into a full academic medical center under the FSU Health umbrella.
A third and final public hearing on the proposed deal will be held on March 11, according to a Jan. 14 FSU news release.
Under the proposed agreement between the university and city officials, all city‑owned hospital assets currently leased to Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare would ultimately transfer to FSU — also located in Tallahassee — paving the way for integration with FSU Health.
The memorandum of understanding ensures that charity care and indigent care protections will remain in place — and that, in some measures, they will be at least as generous as those under current arrangements. It also outlines a 30‑year investment plan totaling more than $1.7 billion to support improvements to local facilities, clinical programs, research infrastructure and broader health system development.
As part of that commitment, FSU has agreed to:
- Provide $109 million in annual payments over 30 years as compensation for the city‑owned assets.
- Invest $250 million by the end of 2034 in facility upgrades, clinical faculty support and research resources.
- Pursue an additional $1.7 billion or more over three decades via grants, donations and other funding to expand clinical space, laboratory facilities and academic programs tied to FSU Health’s planned academic health center.
“We are truly grateful for the City Commission’s approval of this transfer,” FSU President Richard McCullough said in the release. “We are now poised to build a world-class academic health center that will change the landscape of healthcare in Tallahassee and beyond. This moment is the culmination of our shared commitment to discovery, care, and opportunity. I look forward to the next steps as we work together to create a healthier future for all.”
The university and Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare struck a separate memorandum of understanding in September that established the framework for the academic medical center.
The academic medical center will expand specialty care, enhance research infrastructure and reduce the need for residents to travel outside the region for advanced healthcare, according to the release.
The Tallahassee-Leon County Office of Economic Vitality projects the academic medical center will create more than 900 jobs over the next three decades.
The post FSU moves closer to launching academic medical center in Tallahassee appeared first on Becker's Hospital Review | Healthcare News & Analysis.
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