Ballad confirms new Unicoi County Hospital

This is a breaking story and will be updated. Ballad Health confirmed it will rebuild Unicoi County Hospital in a Wednesday morning announcement. The facility, which will replace the Erwin hospital flooded by Hurricane Helene in September 2024, will move to the Town of Unicoi. The land purchase is expected to finalize in February. Construction will begin in the spring and take about two years. The new hospital will have a similar build with inpatient beds and outpatient services. It will also have improved access for emergency services in the new location, according to a press release. 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. "I'd like to thank Rep. Renea Jones for representing our area well and helping to look out for citizens," Unicoi Mayor Kevin McInturff said. "The Town of Unicoi will welcome Ballad Health and look forward to working with them." McInturff said the facility will be near Interstate 26 and that the Federal Emergency Management Agency has to okay the property before construction starts. FEMA and the state approved $9.8 million for the project last February. "I think it's fantastic," he said. "It's the most logical place as far as convenience. It will be a big asset to the town as far as citizens." The fate of the Unicoi County Hospital became unclear after July cuts to Medicaid under the Trump Administration's "One Big Beautiful Bill." Ballad Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Alan Levine took to social media as the bill worked through Congress, noting that if it became law the health system would "have no choice but delay the construction of the replacement hospital for Unicoi County" until the system met with lawmakers. In September, both Levine and Chief Operating Officer Eric Deaton estimated the rebuild to cost around $50 million. Each expressed concern that cuts to Medicaid, which reimburses hospitals like Ballad's, would affect the possibility of operating in a positive margin. "[It] could actually wipe out our entire bottom line," Deaton said at the time. "When you look at making this type of investment to rebuild the facility, it's hard to do that with that type of deficit you're trying to make up."