State Grant Will Fund New Ticonderoga Primary Care Center
$5.67 Million State Grant Will Fund New Ticonderoga Primary Care Center
New facility will complete the transformation of former Moses Ludington Hospital into a medical village.
ELIZABETHTOWN, N.Y. (Feb. 11, 2019): The University of Vermont Health Network – Elizabethtown Community Hospital has been awarded $5.67 million by New York State for the construction of a federally qualified health center to provide primary care services on the hospital’s Ticonderoga campus. The project is a partnership with Hudson Headwaters Health Network, a Queensbury-based nonprofit that operates 18 health centers in the North Country, including one in Ticonderoga.
The new 10,300-square-foot primary care center will break ground this summer. When finished, it will complete the multi-year transformation of the former Moses Ludington Hospital campus into a fully-integrated medical village, bringing together a variety of complementary health-related services in one convenient location.
“The Ticonderoga community should be proud of driving the development of a new model of care that I think others may follow, and I hope New York’s innovative approach to meeting the challenge of maintaining health care access in rural areas is emulated as well,” said John Brumsted, M.D., president and CEO of the University of Vermont Health Network. “This is a perfect example of the good that comes from our locally-led, non-profit health care system listening to and partnering with the communities we serve.”
Funds for the project have been made available through New York’s Statewide Health Care Facility Transformation Program, which has been created to improve patient care through the development of high-quality medical facilities and programs. The program prioritizes projects that help ensure the financial sustainability of safety-net healthcare providers and preserve or expand essential health care services. The new Ticonderoga facility meets all of these criteria.
“At a time when rural hospitals across the country are struggling financially, New York State stands out as a leader in creating innovative programs to strengthen and preserve access to vital health care services,” said John Remillard, president of Elizabethtown Community Hospital. “Thank you to Governor Cuomo, the Department of Health, Senator Betty Little and Assemblyman Dan Stec for helping us ensure that North Country residents have access to the high-quality care they need and deserve.”
Hudson Headwaters’ Ticonderoga Health Center, which has operated in the town since 1992, will relocate upon the opening of the new Ticonderoga family health facility on Elizabethtown Community Hospital’s Ticonderoga campus. Its 15 providers in pediatric and adult primary care, podiatry and women’s health services, as well as its full complement of nursing and support staff, integrated behavioral health and social work support teams will continue to provide services on the new campus.
“We are extremely pleased to partner with Elizabethtown Community Hospital in expanding the range of care available to residents of Ticonderoga and the surrounding area,” said Tucker Slingerland, M.D., CEO of Hudson Headwaters Health Network. “The investment the University of Vermont Health Network has made in our rural communities, and the support from our state government, speak to the commitment we all share to offer convenient, well-coordinated health care to patients in the Ticonderoga. This collaboration will enable us to continue our mission of providing the best health care, and access to that care, for everyone in our communities.”