Ballad confirms new Unicoi County Hospital

Ballad Health confirmed it will rebuild Unicoi County Hospital in a Wednesday morning announcement. The $44 million facility will replace the Erwin hospital flooded by Hurricane Helene in September 2024. This time, it will stand in the Town of Unicoi off of Tinker Road. The land purchase is expected to be finalized in February. Construction will begin in the spring and take about two years, with hopes to finish before the end of 2027. The new hospital will have a similar build to the old one: 40,000 square feet with 10 inpatient beds, outpatient services, an emergency department and a laboratory. Ballad Chief Operating Officer Eric Deaton said the health system looked at nearly a dozen different sites in Erwin and Unicoi County for a new facility. The final site was chosen for its access off of Interstate 26 and a lack of railroad traffic compared to other options. The state and Federal Emergency Management Agency approved $9.8 million last February to rebuild the hospital. Additional FEMA and state funds, plus insurance reimbursement, will also help pay for the building. While Ballad considered a few different options for rebuilding, Deaton said a hospital with inpatient beds is the best project for the future. "If we can keep people getting care in their own community, it's much better for them," he said. "Because it really does help us decompress some of our higher tertiary hospitals." The former hospital was deemed unfit for repair and will be destroyed in early February. The urgent care facility in Erwin will remain open throughout construction. While the Unicoi County Hospital was always slated for rebuilding after its post-Helene damage, its fate became unclear after July cuts to Medicaid under the Trump Administration's "One Big Beautiful Bill." In September, both Deaton and Ballad Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Alan Levine expressed concern that cuts to the federal program, which reimburses hospitals like Ballad's, would affect the possibility of operating in a positive margin. Deaton said Ballad is still concerned, but that direct payments from the Tennessee legislature helped boost their payment plan. "In 2028, we expect to see that start to decline again, so that has been a consideration through this whole process," he said. "But we really feel like we're very committed to this community." The reinstatement of the hospital is emotional, Deaton added, for himself and residents. "That day the hospital flooded, it was one of the most difficult in my 40-year career," he said. "This community is pretty special to us." Unicoi Mayor Kevin McInturff called the approved project "fantastic" and thanked Tennessee Rep. Renea Jones, R-Unicoi, for representing the area. "The Town of Unicoi will welcome Ballad Health and look forward to working with them," he said. "It will be a big asset to the town."