Newman Regional Health’s Board of Trustees is considering a massive philanthropic campaign.
Board members on Wednesday received an update on a possible $50 million “Building On” effort to augment patient care, technology and programs, of which $40 million would be generated through donations over a three-year to five-year period. Kinetic, the consulting firm that developed an executive summary after research and current donor interviews throughout 2025 as part of a feasibility study, says investments into healthcare infrastructure are important and the goal is lofty but attainable.
Chief Executive Officer Cathy Pimple agrees, based on existing relationships, conversation results and possible connections with external partners to enhance matching opportunities.
Pimple tells KVOE News hospital administrators had been discussing the potential need for such an effort for about 18 months before bringing Kinetic on board.
Pimple says discussions about the capital campaign is not related to Stormont Vail Health’s eventual departure from the Newman Regional Health Medical Partners building over the next two years.
Board members did not make a decision on the campaign Wednesday. Specifics on exactly where funds would be placed are pending — but Pimple tells KVOE News longstanding conversations about building a new patient tower above the existing emergency department may be included if things go forward.
Following that conversation, the board approved a 2026 budget projecting net operating revenue around $99 million and about $2.3 million in non-operating revenue gains compared to expenses, including salaries and benefits, depreciation, amortization, interest and other operations costs totaling around $101 million — leading to an expected revenue of around $60,000 for the year. The budget is built on several assumptions, including increases in surgery, cath lab and primary care patient volumes, a small increase in deliveries as obstetrics closes at Coffey Health System, decreases in insurance settlements, changes in federal programs like Medicaid and the 340B drug prescription program, benefit increases and changes in both restricted funds and grant money.
Total net revenues have increased every year since garnering around $77.5 million in 2022, growing to the projected $99 million in 2026.
Pimple says the ’26 budget is “conservative” and the hospital is in much better shape than it was in 2022 and 2023.
The budget approval comes as Newman Regional Health Medical Partners — including Orthopedics, Surgery, Primary Care, Cardiology, Ob/Gyn and ExpressCare — combined to lose an estimate of almost $5.4 million year-to-date through November. Of those departments, the only one with a budget surplus was ExpressCare at over $400,000. The other named departments all had projected losses of six or seven figures through November, topped by Cardiology at nearly $1.6 million. The budgeted net loss for 2026 is $5.6 million, again with ExpressCare the only department in the black.
Pimple says the financial situation isn’t nearly as dire as the balance sheet would suggest.
Pimple says a better revenue-expense comparison is by service line, but those numbers are not immediately available.
The board also passed the 2026-2028 capital and long-term capital budget document with over $10 million in total expenditures. It also approved a $215,000 replacement of a radiology unit in the Orthopedics department.
