UM Laurel Medical Center Receives Regulatory Approval to Proceed with Plans to Transform Health Care Services for the Laurel/Beltsville Area

Cheverly, MD (September 20, 2018) – Today, University of Maryland Laurel Medical Center received regulatory approval from the Maryland Health Care Commission to move forward with plans to transform and enhance the health care services offered in Laurel.  The filing, called a Request for Certificate of Need Exemption, was submitted in April and laid out plans to transform the aging hospital into a new state-of-the-art health care destination offering services including but not limited to 24/7 emergency care, short-stay overnight care, outpatient surgery and enhanced outpatient behavioral health programs and services.  The current building will house approved services until the construction of the new facility is complete.

The new facility, UM Laurel Medical Center, will represent a new model of care representing a significant investment in more services to keep residents healthy in their community and avoid unnecessary inpatient admissions and emergency room visits.  This model also allows for expansion of ongoing services including outpatient surgery and intensive outpatient treatment for patients with behavioral health needs, with a goal of reducing the need for hospitalizations.

Plans for the new facility represent recommendations from a  multi-phase planning process that began in July 2016 when the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS), Laurel Mayor Craig Moe and other community leaders launched a Strategic Planning Work Group (SPWG) to address the future of health care in Laurel.

UM Laurel Medical Center's current inpatient medical/surgical units and inpatient behavioral health services will soon be relocated to UM Prince George’s Hospital Center in Cheverly. Regulators had already approved the move of the existing chronic care and inpatient rehabilitation units at UM Laurel Medical Center to UM Prince George’s Hospital Center.  The relocation of these units is projected to occur later this year.

Construction of the new UM Laurel Medical Center is expected to begin in winter 2019 and be completed in spring 2021. Significant private sector investment is also anticipated as the surrounding medical campus is developed.

For more information on the project and renderings of the new facility, visit https://umcapitalregion.org/um-capital-laurel.

About University of Maryland Capital Region Health 

Providing primary and specialty health care services to Prince George’s County and the neighboring area, University of Maryland Capital Region Health was established in September 2017 upon formal affiliation with the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS), and is committed to making a positive impact on the health and well-being of patients and families.  University of Maryland Capital Region Health operates the University of Maryland Prince George’s Hospital Center in Cheverly, University of Maryland Laurel Medical Center, University of Maryland Bowie Health Campus, and the University of Maryland Family Health & Wellness Center in Suitland. Together, community physicians and University of Maryland School of Medicine (SOM) faculty provide clinical expertise across a range of specialties and programs including: acute rehabilitation; anesthesiology; critical and chronic ventilation care; emergency medicine; neonatology (including the County’s highest level NICU); orthopaedics; vascular surgery; a certified and designated primary stroke center; and the State’s second-busiest Trauma Center.  University of Maryland School of Medicine faculty also lead the highly-regarded cardiac surgery program at UM Prince George’s Hospital Center. A new state-of-the-art regional medical center is expected to open in Largo in 2021. For more information, visit www.umcapitalregion.org


About the University of Maryland Medical System

The University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS) is a university-based regional health care system focused on serving the health care needs of Maryland, bringing innovation, discovery and research to the care we provide and educating the state’s future physician and health care professionals through our partnership with the University of Maryland School of Medicine and the UM Schools of Nursing, Pharmacy, Social Work and Dentistry in Baltimore.  As one of the largest private employers in the State, the health system’s 25,000 employees and 4,000 affiliated physicians provide primary and specialty care in more than 150 locations and at 14 hospitals.  UMMS’ flagship academic campus, the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore, is recognized regionally and nationally for excellence and innovation in specialized care.  Our acute care and specialty rehabilitation hospitals serve urban, suburban and rural communities and are located in 13 counties across the State. In addition, UMMS operates health insurance plans serving Medicare and Medicaid members. For more information, visit www.umms.org.