The move reflects Nicklaus\u2019 growth strategy<\/a>\u00a0 in\u00a0South Florida\u2019s suburbs over the last few years. Beyond its inpatient hospitals and urgent care centers, the health system now operates primary and specialty-care clinics across four counties, spanning Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach and Collier.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re the only freestanding children\u2019s health system in South Florida, and I think we\u2019re positioned well for the future,\u201d said Yair Katz, chief operating officer of Nicklaus Children\u2019s Health System, the private nonprofit hospital organization that serves all children regardless of ability to pay.<\/p>\n That rapid, quiet expansion puts Nicklaus well on its way to building a regional network.<\/p>\n Through similar co-location partnerships, Nicklaus already operates children\u2019s hospitals within adult healthcare systems in Jupiter and Naples, anchoring its position as the dominant pediatric provider across South and Southwest Florida.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a model that has not been as prevalent in Florida, but nationally it\u2019s been used, and there are successful cases,\u201d Katz said.<\/p>\n More choices for families, competition in Broward<\/p>\n Historically, Joe DiMaggio Children\u2019s Hospital \u2014 part of the Memorial Healthcare System \u2014 was the main provider of complex pediatric emergency and specialty care in Broward County, with more than 600 physicians.<\/p>\n That near-total market share is now being challenged.<\/p>\n By taking over pediatric services at Broward Health\u2019s Fort Lauderdale and Coral Springs campuses, Nicklaus has introduced hundreds of its own pediatric clinicians directly into Joe DiMaggio\u2019s service area. Nicklaus, a nonprofit powerhouse in fundraising, is larger overall, with both a higher total physician count and a deeper roster of subspecialists, totaling about 900 clinicians.<\/p>\n Broward Health CEO Shane Strum has said that in early 2024, he had approached Memorial about having DiMaggio replace Broward Health\u2019s Salah Foundation Children\u2019s Hospital in Fort Lauderdale and Coral Springs, rather than Nicklaus.<\/p>\n \u00a0After discussing a potential partnership with DiMaggio, Memorial, \u201cchose not to pursue an affiliation at that time, so Broward Health identified Nicklaus Children\u2019s as the partner ready and aligned to help build out a broader pediatric care network within our public health system,\u201d Broward Health said in a written statement provided to the South Florida Sun Sentinel last week.<\/p>\n Strum spearheaded the partnership with Nicklaus, DiMaggio\u2019s competitor,\u00a0and after he became interim CEO of Memorial Healthcare System in September 2024, publicly advocated for the eventual creation of a single, massive \u201cChildren\u2019s Hospital of Florida<\/a>.\u201d While that would require significant governmental and administrative approval and could take years, Nicklaus appears well on its way to building a regional network on its own.<\/p>\n The announcement in November 2024<\/a> of Nicklaus\u2019 partnership and expansion into Broward County\u00a0did not sit well with some Joe DiMaggio\u2019s doctors, and led to an initial flurry of anonymous letters of concern to Memorial\u2019s board.<\/p>\n Memorial Healthcare System provided a statement to the Sun Sentinel last week saying, \u201cNicklaus Children\u2019s expansion in Broward County, including its partnership with Broward Health, has not affected Joe DiMaggio Children\u2019s Hospital\u2019s ability to serve children and families or our physician recruitment efforts. Our volumes, access, and specialty services have remained stable, and we continue to see strong demand from families who rely on Joe DiMaggio for comprehensive pediatric care.\u201d<\/p>\n In Broward, Nicklaus\u2019 arrival offers families with Blue Cross insurance plans a new and significant option. It is in-network with Blue Cross Blue Shield, the state\u2019s largest insurer \u2014 the only children\u2019s hospital in Broward County that now accepts the insurance. Broward Health and Memorial Healthcare hospitals have reached an impasse in contract negotiations with Blue Cross and are out-of-network at all hospitals in those health systems, including Joe DiMaggio. That had forced families with Florida Blue plans to leave the county for inpatient care before Nicklaus took over pediatric care at Broward Health in March.<\/p>\n When asked about competition with Joe DiMaggio, Katz said, \u201cThe community needs pediatric resources. So, I think we\u2019re complementing each other at the moment.\u201d<\/p>\n Memorial Healthcare System provided a similar perspective in a statement:\u00a0 \u201cWe recognize that additional pediatric resources in Broward can be positive for the community. Families benefit when more children\u2019s providers are focused on expanding access to specialized care, and we remain committed to playing a leading role in that broader ecosystem.\u201d<\/p>\n To serve Broward, Nicklaus doctors at Broward Health draw on their experts, regardless of their home base.\u00a0 In April, early in the partnership,\u00a0the chief of cardiovascular medicine at Nicklaus in Miami, Dr. Shyam Sathanandam,\u00a0 performed a unique cardiac procedure in Fort Lauderdale within a baby\u2019s own infant bed.<\/p>\n \u201cInstead of transferring the baby to a higher-level facility, the team came from Miami, and we were able to bring that expertise to the Broward community,\u201d Katz said.<\/p>\n The 25-year contract between Nicklaus and Broward Health, a public, taxpayer-funded health system, can be terminated by either party without cause after 10 years, with one year\u2019s notice. The contract also establishes a joint oversight committee and requires both to provide charity care when needed. Each health system has its own foundation that raises millions of dollars annually, and the contract allows each to continue to do so independently.<\/p>\n The financial agreement has three components: Nicklaus pays rent for 149 pediatric beds and 80 neonatal intensive care unit\u00a0beds in the Fort Lauderdale and Coral Springs hospitals; it contracts with Broward Health for services such as pharmacy, imaging, and dietary; and Nicklaus shares profits with Broward Health from pediatric care at the Fort Lauderdale and Coral Springs hospitals, according to Katz.<\/p>\n The taxpayer-funded Broward Health provided its contract with Nicklaus to the Sun Sentinel with the financial details of the partnership redacted. Because of the redactions, the exact profit split between Broward Health and Nicklaus is unknown, as is the amount of the rental payments Broward Health receives from Nicklaus. Broward Health asserts that the financial information is protected under Florida law and exempt from disclosure.<\/p>\n In the transition, all the pediatric nurses working for Broward Health\u00a0became Nicklaus employees, as did all the physicians who worked exclusively in pediatrics. Nicklaus contracted with a physicians\u2019 group to provide emergency care and gave 174 community physicians privileges at the children\u2019s hospital, Katz said.<\/p>\n Katz said in specialties where Nicklaus saw a gap in Broward, such as rheumatology, neonatology and cardiology, it brought in physicians from its main campus in Miami-Dade.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re building programs that previously didn\u2019t exist in the Broward market,\u201d Katz said, adding that Nicklaus has an advantage in recruitment over others in South Florida because it is a standalone children\u2019s hospital with a national reputation among specialists.<\/p>\n Broward Health said Nicklaus\u2019 recruitment will reduce patient transfers to other hospitals.<\/p>\n \u201cAs the partnership continues to grow, Broward Health and Nicklaus Children\u2019s remain focused on bringing more specialists and subspecialists into the community, expanding services, and further improving the patient experience for children and their families,\u201d Broward Health\u2019s written statement said<\/p>\n Bigger expansion plans<\/p>\n Outside of the hospital setting, Nicklaus\u2019 expansion has brought specialists in key areas to patients in Broward and Palm Beach counties. In Davie, Nicklaus opened a clinic in mid-2025 that focuses on cardiology, orthopedics, gastroenterology, neurology, plastic surgery and pediatric radiology.<\/p>\n \u201cOver the next one to three years is really when we see this large influx of new physicians essentially building a stronger multi-specialty group in Broward to provide better access to kids. We\u2019re going to keep growing,\u201d Katz said.<\/p>\n In Boca Raton, Nicklaus opened a specialty care center in May that focuses on pediatric cardiology, including congenital heart defects and heart disease.<\/p>\n Rather than requiring patients to drive to a central hospital location, Nicklaus\u2019 goal is to extend subspecialty care into communities across the region. For families navigating conditions such as cancer, congenital heart defects or orthopedic disorders, travel adds a layer of inconvenience to their medical treatment.<\/p>\n![\"Yair](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/tfl-l-nicklaus-yair-katz1.jpg\")
Yair Katz, the new chief operating officer of Nicklaus Children’s Health System, is seen at Nicklaus’ Dan Marino Outpatient Center in Weston. (Carline Jean\/South Florida Sun Sentinel)<\/p>\n![\"Nicklaus](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/tfl-l-nicklaus-yair-katz3.jpg\")
Signage for Nicklaus Children’s Hospital is seen at the Broward Health Medical Center in Fort Lauderdale. (Carline Jean\/South Florida Sun Sentinel)
\nHow the Nicklaus\/Broward Health partnership works<\/p>\n