State regulators have approved a first-of-its-kind plan between two of Chattanooga’s biggest hospitals to build a multispeciality, outpatient surgery center inside a former U.S. Xpress office building off Interstate 75 in the rapidly growing East Brainerd community.
The $23.2 million facility, named Chattanooga East Surgicenter, will be housed on property purchased by Parkridge Health System for $36 million in August.
Chris Cosby, CEO of Parkridge, said during a Health Facilities Commission meeting last week that Parkridge’s parent company, HCA, will form a general partnership with Erlanger Health — Chattanooga’s largest hospital, only safety-net provider and a Parkridge competitor — in which the surgery center is 51% owned by HCA and 49% owned by Erlanger.