CoxHealth, St. Louis hospital team up for Ozarks pediatric care
CoxHealth announced it is working with St. Louis Children's Hospital to establish a standalone outpatient pediatric center in Springfield.
The two signed a letter of intent to form a new joint venture, according to a press release. They hope to reach a final agreement by fall.
CoxHealth had previously been working with Mercy Health in an effort to bring additional pediatric care to Springfield. The project was announced in November 2023 but had been in the works for a year before that, according to previous reporting. In March, Mercy announced it was pursuing a partnership with Children's Mercy in Kansas City. The move surprised CoxHealth.
CoxHealth is now aiming to make pediatric care more accessible, advanced and sustainable.
"By working together, CoxHealth and SLCH — with the support and expertise of pediatric specialists at Washington University School of Medicine — aim to increase access to world-class pediatric care and create a health care hub for children and families in Springfield, southwest Missouri, and beyond," the press release said.
Washington University pediatric specialists staff SLCH, which is part of the BJC Health System in St. Louis.
“In St. Louis Children's and Washington University, we are fortunate to have collaborators that are mutually committed to working with us to make Springfield a medical hub for pediatric care,” said Max Buetow, CoxHealth president and CEO. “Today marks an important step in what will be a thoughtful and intentional process to determine how we can improve and expand access to pediatric care for hundreds of thousands of families in this region.”
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