{"id":498215,"date":"2026-06-18T01:12:18","date_gmt":"2026-06-18T01:12:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/498215\/"},"modified":"2026-06-18T01:12:18","modified_gmt":"2026-06-18T01:12:18","slug":"as-inova-continues-expanding-ceo-urges-fairfax-to-streamline-development-process","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/498215\/","title":{"rendered":"As Inova continues expanding, CEO urges Fairfax to streamline development process"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Construction work on Franconia-Springfield campus (via Inova Health System and Fairfax County)<\/p>\n

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Construction work on West End Town Center campus (via Inova Health System and Fairfax County)<\/p>\n

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Officials break ground on a new Franconia-Springfield Hospital in 2024 (staff photo by James Cullum)<\/p>\n

Inova Health System\u2019s CEO used a recent roundtable discussion<\/a> with the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors and business leaders to connect his organization\u2019s growth<\/a> to broader quality of life across the region.<\/p>\n

Health care is \u201cthe job engine and in many ways economic engine\u201d of Northern Virginia, Dr. J. Stephen Jones said at yesterday\u2019s meeting of the county\u2019s Council for Economic Opportunity<\/a>.<\/p>\n

With its workforce of 26,000 employees growing an average of 1,000 a year and a budget approaching $7 billion annually, the nonprofit health system is the largest private employer in the Washington region.<\/p>\n

While generally upbeat about Inova\u2019s working relationship with the county government, Jones expressed concerns similar to those of most developers, describing the planning and permitting process as involving too much bureaucracy and too lengthy a period to get projects approved.<\/p>\n

\u201cMake it easy. You\u2019ll get more things fast,\u201d he said. \u201cIf it\u2019s not doable to build, building doesn\u2019t happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Inova Health System CEO Dr. J. Stephen Jones (screenshot via Fairfax County)<\/p>\n

Inova currently is in the midst of two major hospital projects<\/a>, both designed to replace the aging Alexandria Hospital.<\/p>\n

A 192-bed facility<\/a> is rising at West End Town Center on the former Landmark Mall site<\/a> in the City of Alexandria, while the new 110-bed Inova Franconia-Springfield Hospital<\/a> is linked to the existing HealthPlex outpatient facility.<\/p>\n

Jones said both facilities remain on track to open \u2014 perhaps on the same day \u2014 in late 2028.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt will be an employment magnet,\u201d Jones said of the $2.5 billion being invested in the facilities. \u201cWe have confidence in our ability to arrive and thrive.\u201d<\/p>\n

When complete, the existing Inova Alexandria Hospital<\/a> on Seminary Road will close. Inova has been exploring a possible redevelopment<\/a> of the site centered on housing.<\/p>\n

A major expansion<\/a> of emergency department facilities at Inova Fairfax Hospital in Woodburn is also underway. Roughly doubling the size of the existing emergency room, which is the fourth busiest in the country, the project has so far included the addition of a new children\u2019s ER with its own entrance and a mental health unit<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Inova is now working to expand the hospital\u2019s adult ER with a new entrance facing Gallows Road. The second phase of construction is expected to finish in 2028.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Inova Fairfax Hospital emergency room expansion details from presentation to Fairfax County\u2019s Council on Economic Opportunity (via Inova Health System)<\/p>\n

In the meantime, the organization is attempting to give patients more urgent care options, which generally provide services at a lower cost than what\u2019s available at emergency departments, Jones said.<\/p>\n

Among other topics discussed by Jones at the roundtable:<\/p>\n

Community-based facilities: Inova is placing increased emphasis on community-based facilities, particularly in areas with larger percentages of low-income residents. \u201cWe\u2019ve been very much intentional in meeting the need where the need is,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Inova Mount Vernon Hospital: According to Jones, there are no plans to reduce acute care offerings at Inova Mount Vernon Hospital<\/a>, which recently celebrated 50 years, as some have feared. \u201cAs long as I am CEO, it will be a thriving hospital we are investing in,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Charity care: The dollar amount of care that Inova is providing to those without the ability to pay has increased 27% over the past year, but Jones says \u201cwe do not ever run\u201d from providing that kind of care.<\/p>\n

Artificial intelligence: Jones sees both opportunities and challenges<\/a> in how artificial intelligence technology could affect the health care industry. \u201cWe\u2019re going to do our very best to stay with it,\u201d he said of the evolving AI landscape.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Fairfax Hospital in 1961 (via Inova Health System)<\/p>\n

The Fairfax County government has partnered with what evolved into Inova Health System since planning for Fairfax Hospital began in the 1950s. That facility opened in 1961<\/a>, and Inova has continued expanding both on its Fairfax campus and across the region ever since.<\/p>\n

Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay said that from his vantage point, the organization is taking the right steps to meet community needs.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know that I\u2019ve ever felt more confidence in the leadership and the future,\u201d McKay said.<\/p>\n

Having a solid regional health-care infrastructure \u2014 via Inova and others \u2014 aids in economic development efforts, McKay said.<\/p>\n

Companies \u201cabsolutely look at health care\u201d when making relocation and expansion decisions, he said.<\/p>\n

Dan Storck, who chairs the Council of Economic Opportunity, noted that health care as a percentage of the nation\u2019s economy has more than doubled to 18% over the past half-century.<\/p>\n

Moving forward with new facilities and services is not optional, but necessary, Storck said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we\u2019re not winning, we\u2019re losing,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Construction work on Franconia-Springfield campus (via Inova Health System and Fairfax County) Construction work on West End Town…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":498216,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[163,521,85,46],"class_list":["post-498215","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-healthcare","tag-health","tag-healthcare","tag-il","tag-israel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/498215","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=498215"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/498215\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/498216"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=498215"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=498215"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=498215"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}