No-go on Catholic Healthcare West

Rumors have been swirling in recent days about possible hospitals coming to Maricopa.  Maricopa has been involved in negotiations with at least three hospital chains about the prospect of locating in the city for the past four years, but the names or details behind those talks cannot be disclosed due to confidentiality reasons, according to Danielle Casey, Maricopa’s economic development manager.

Bob Campbell, vice president of business development for Catholic Healthcare West, can dispel one: his company has no immediate plans of opening a hospital site in Maricopa.

Catholic Healthcare West is a non-profit health-care organization that owns and operates hospitals across the western United States, including Chandler Regional Hospital, St. Joseph’s Hospital and Mercy Gilbert Hospital.

“Maricopa is a market we have looked at, but its population is currently not large enough to support one of our hospital model,” Campbell said, citing the population base his company looks for when determining a possible site as in the 100,000 to 150,000 range. In addition to the population necessary to support a site, Campbell said Catholic Healthcare West is looking for solid economic growth to return prior to building any more hospitals in the state.

“We are using this time to make upgrades to our existing sites and plan for the future.”

(A version of this story appeared in the February issue of InMaricopa News.)

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