Another step closer
Funding for ODU-EVMS merger is a Hampton Roads necessity
The House and Senate approved budget plans this week and will begin the process of hashing out the details between the two. One item included in both promises to deliver transformational change for health care in Hampton Roads, benefitting generations to come.
Both chambers included $37 million to complete the ongoing merger of Old Dominion University and Eastern Virginia Medical School. The long-anticipated union — boosted by the involvement of Norfolk State University and Sentara Health — intends to train the next wave of medical professionals and focus on illness and disparities endemic to Hampton Roads, the sort of focus that can make a lasting difference in the lives of area residents.
Indications suggest that, come July 1, a new age for health care will begin in Hampton Roads.
That’s the date set by Gov. Glenn Youngkin and the General Assembly to complete the ODU-EVMS merger, a process that has been ongoing for more than four years. It has not been an easy road for these proud institutions to travel, but leaders of both schools, and officials throughout the region, have pushed ahead with the knowledge that doing so serves their long-term interests as well as those of the local population.
EVMS is one of only three stand-alone medical schools in the country, a point of pride that initially saw it push back on proposals to partner with ODU. In 2020, when whispers of the merger first increased in volume, the EVMS Board of Visitors held a vote of no confidence a day before release of a study conducted by Manatt Health Strategies and funded in part by Sentara that proposed joining the two institutions.
However, ensuring EVMS remains financially secure, rather than financially viable, necessitated change. And a year later, officials with the three parties — ODU, EVMS and Sentara — signed a memorandum of understanding to “continue exploring the value of aligning or affiliating” and work toward the creation of an academic health center.
That came months after ODU and EVMS entered into a partnership with Norfolk State to develop a joint School of Public
Health. That initiative further leverages the incredible talent of these institutions to train health professionals and tackle the pressing problems seen in our communities.
As was highlighted at both announcements, Hampton Roads residents suffer from rates of heart disease, infant mortality, maternal mortality, diabetes and cancer that outpace state averages. The COVID pandemic underscored the need to strengthen public health throughout the region and address long standing health disparities that are especially harmful to minority communities.
At the same time, Virginia faces a critical shortage of primary care physicians, part of a nationwide problem. A 2022 study by Virginia Commonwealth University’s School of Medicine found that the number of practicing doctors was 25% smaller than previously known. A dwindling number of physicians exacerbates problems with health care access and continuity of care.
ODU says that joining forces with EVMS would create the largest medical school in Virginia, “both the number of health sciences programs offered and the number of students enrolled in those programs.” Leveraging that reach and the schools’ considerable intellectual heft can help address the region’s persistent ills and train the medical professionals needed to improve care throughout Hampton Roads.
Given those many benefits, the merger has earned support from Republican and Democratic lawmakers alike, as well as the backing of Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin and his Democratic predecessor Ralph Northam. All understand the necessity of this proposal, its urgency and its tremendous potential.
The inclusion of $37 million in both the House and Senate budget proposals to complete the merger is a must-have for Hampton Roads, and our delegation should be relentless in ensuring that money is included in the spending plan that ultimately reaches Youngkin’s desk.
Completion of this project, years in the making, will usher in a new, healthier day for our region and for the commonwealth. The General Assembly and the governor must see it done.