CVHC greenlights full-service hospital in Lake Hallie

December 23, 2024

CHIPPEWA FALLS – The Chippewa Valley Health Cooperative (CVHC) is building a full-service, independent, locally-governed, nonprofit hospital in Lake Hallie, with a goal to open in fall 2027. 

Robert Krause, chair of the board of organizers for the cooperative, said the decision came after research to determine the optimal configuration, healthcare service offering, location and long-term sustainability requirements for a new independent hospital in the Chippewa Valley. 

CVHC’s new 144,000-square-foot hospital will be a flexible facility and include 48 hospital beds, a 12-bed intensive care unit (ICU), an emergency department, medical-surgical services, labor and delivery, critical care units, a cancer center and diagnostic services including laboratory, radiology and cardiology services. 

The new hospital will also have a comprehensive therapy unit to offer physical, occupational and speech therapies, and Krause said CVHC is also exploring ways to bring behavioral health services to the community.

He said the projected cost for the new hospital is $120 million, with a total project cost of $158 million, including start-up costs, substantially less than initial estimates. 

“Our community and our research have made it abundantly clear that our growing region needs access to more local, effective and affordable healthcare services in many critical areas,” he said. “The cooperative’s new full-service hospital will provide a wide range of healthcare services here, not a long ambulance or helicopter ride away.” 

Krause said the new independent hospital will employ more than 410 full-time employees, not including medical staff.

“We have moved as fast as we could without cutting corners with due diligence to determine the size, location and range of healthcare services we need to put in place to ensure that our community has access to exceptional, local, cost-effective healthcare for generations to come,” he said.

In evaluating many different locations throughout Eau Claire and Chippewa Counties for the new hospital, Krause said the cooperative “turned over every leaf to get the best information and data possible to help us make our decision and ensure the long-term viability of a thriving, local, independent hospital,” ultimately choosing a 20-acre parcel in Lake Hallie along the Highway 53 North-South corridor with convenient access to Interstate 94 and East-West County Highways 29 and 12.