Cherokee Nation breaks ground on new $400m hospital

TAHLEQUAH, Okla. — On Thursday afternoon, Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. celebrated the groundbreaking of a new six-story, 400,000-square-foot hospital.

“This investment is going to more than double our capacity for inpatient care at the Cherokee Nation,” Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin said.

The new facility, when complete, will replace the 40-year-old W.W. Hastings Hospital in Tahlequah which has only 56 beds.

“Our current W.W. Hastings Hospital is too small,” Hoskin said. “It’s an aging facility. Building one that’s going to double our capacity, add more services, that’s what we need to keep up with the high expectations that the Cherokee people have for health care.”

The $400 million hospital will have 127 beds, a helipad on the roof, and include a NICU.

“A lot of their support is here, and to have to drive an hour away, sometimes you don’t get that support that you would have when you’re home,” said Bertina Washington who gave birth to two children at W.W. Hastings Hospital.

The new hospital will be connected by a bridge to the Cherokee Nation Outpatient Health Center on the tribe’s medical campus off Ross Avenue in Tahlequah.

The new build will include an emergency room, a surgery center, ICU, imaging equipment, hospice care, and a pharmacy and lab on site.

Construction on the new Level III trauma center is expected to last 24 months.

The larger facility could also end up employing additional staff.