The project is being funded as part of the $800 million bond program for the Tarrant County Hospital District that was approved by voters in 2018. JPS Health Network plans to invest another $400 million from its operations for a combined $1.2 billion modernization and expansion plan.
“Regarding the bond work, there continues to be a lot of work that's going on,” Dr. Karen Duncan, president and chief executive officer of JPS Health Network, told Tarrant County commissioners in May. “There have been a lot of RFPs [requests for proposals] and RFQs [requests for qualifications] that have gone out. We've had great response.”
The master plan calls for four phases of improvements at the main hospital campus at 1500 S. Main St. in Fort Worth. Included in the plans are eight new buildings or parking structures as well as the expansion of two existing buildings and more parking lots, according to plans. There will also be four medical homes, or clinics, funded through the planned expansion.
The new building that will temporarily house the Psychiatric Emergency Center will be located at the hospital’s main campus. The center is being built now to add more space and address a “critical short-term need,” according to hospital officials. The center will later be incorporated into a new Behavioral Health Inpatient Hospital that will be built during phase 4. The center's new building will then be repurposed.
The first project to be funded through the bond program will be one of four planned medical homes. These clinics offer multiple services, including primary care, radiology, lab, pharmacy, dental and behavioral health, in one building.
The hospital network’s most recent clinic, Medical Home Northeast Tarrant facility in Euless, opened in October 2018.
The next new medical home will be in far southwest Fort Worth. Duncan told commissioners that contract terms for the property are being finalized before the location is announced.
The locations of the other three new medical homes will be determined based on need, hospital officials said.
JPS Health Network operates Tarrant County's only Level I Trauma Center and the county's only Psychiatric Emergency Center. The hospital district receives nearly 40% of its operating revenues from property taxes collected throughout Tarrant County, according to its fiscal year 2021-22 budget. Its tax rate last year was $0.224429 per $100 valuation.
As part of its larger bond program, JPS Health Network is conducting an online survey among Tarrant County residents. The 20-question survey seeks “input and ideas on how they use area medical facilities and provide feedback on how JPS can provide facilities and health resources that meet their needs,” according to a news release.
Residents who wish to take the survey can visit www.yestojps.org/engagement to do so.
