New McLeod Health Hospital coming to Carolina Forest campus
CAROLINA FOREST, S.C. (WBTW) — McLeod Health announced Monday afternoon its plans to open a new hospital in Carolina Forest.
The new hospital will be an expansion of its current Carolina Forest campus off International Drive and Highway 31.
“You’ve got to take care of the health of those people that are coming here, and we want to be that partner that helps to do that in Horry County,” President and CEO Donna Isgett said.
Its current Carolina Forest campus opened in 2016 and serves as an outpatient emergency department, primary care and specialty services.
McLeod now wants to expand its campus to offer in-patient services. The new hospital will be a $56 million, four-story and 48-bed facility.
Scott Montgomery, hospital CEO for McLeod Loris and Carolina Forest, says the new hospital will allow it to serve a variety of needs.
“Being a resident here in Carolina Forest myself, I want to receive care close to home, and so this allows residents here in Carolina Forest and the Grand Strand to stay close to home,” Montgomery said.
Officials said it will be the first new hospital built in the county since 2011. It will have operating suites, diagnostic imaging and laboratory services.
McLeod said its seen more than 100,000 patients just in the past year at its Carolina Forest campus.
Officials like Horry County Council chair Johnny Gardner said the county is growing every day and this new hospital will make sure it’s ahead in medical care.
“We are adding police and fire and E-911 everyday that we can and now were adding hospitals to make sure that we got the whole package,” Gardner said.
Officials said the new hospital will provide around 300 more jobs to the community.
State Sen. Luke Rankin attended the unveiling and said South Carolina, especially Horry County, is growing in the right direction.
“You’ve got to meet the needs of this growing economy,” Rankin said. “It’s a great problem to have, it’s a great place to be where people want to be.”
McLeod officials said they plan to break ground this May and open in the spring 2026.
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Adrianna Lawrence is a multimedia journalist at News13. Adrianna is originally from Virginia Beach, Virginia, and joined the News13 team in June 2023 after graduating from Virginia Commonwealth University in May 2023. Keep up with Adrianna on Instagram, Facebook, and X, formerly Twitter. You can also read more of her work, here.
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