{"id":242679,"date":"2026-07-13T23:37:10","date_gmt":"2026-07-13T23:37:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/242679\/"},"modified":"2026-07-13T23:37:10","modified_gmt":"2026-07-13T23:37:10","slug":"contracts-reviews-offer-glimpse-into-medical-school-budget-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/242679\/","title":{"rendered":"Contracts, reviews offer glimpse into medical school budget | News"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Contracts and internal reviews obtained by Spotlight Delaware reveal new details about how the state will stand up its first-ever medical school. | SPOTLIGHT DELAWARE GRAPHIC BY ELSA KEGELMAN<\/p>\n

Contracts and internal reviews obtained by Spotlight Delaware reveal new details about how the state will stand up its first-ever medical school, as well how leaders decided to partner with Philadelphia-based Thomas Jefferson University among a field of other contenders.\u00a0<\/p>\n

When the state formally announced the endeavor last month<\/a>, no documents about its agreement with Jefferson had been made publicly available.<\/p>\n

But a Freedom of Information Act request filed by Spotlight Delaware has revealed supplemental salaries for executive leadership at Jefferson, renovation plans for the University of Delaware\u2019s campus, as well as a commitment to expand medical residency opportunities in the state.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Spotlight<\/p>\n

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(Spotlight Delaware is a community-powered, collaborative, nonprofit newsroom covering the First State. Learn more at\u00a0SpotlightDelaware.com<\/a>).<\/p>\n

The startup of Delaware\u2019s first medical school<\/a> will be funded with hundreds of millions of dollars awarded to all 50 states to bolster rural healthcare. Delaware intends to spend $78 million over the next five years to launch the school. After that point, though, it would be on Jefferson to keep it open.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The grant, called the Rural Health Transformation Program, was created last summer to court Republican senators hesitant to support more than $900 billion in cuts to Medicaid<\/a>, which could disproportionately impact rural communities and their healthcare facilities.<\/p>\n

In February, Meyer\u2019s office released an initial batch of requests<\/a> for potential vendors to carry out programs that will be funded by the federal grant.<\/p>\n

It came weeks after the state received its first grant award<\/a> from the federal government totaling more than $157 million. The full RHTP award amount for the state remains unclear, but Delaware will receive at least $500 million from the multi-year program.<\/p>\n

What the contract says\u00a0<\/p>\n

The contract contains a budget for the first year of the five-year program, spanning from July 1 to Oct. 30, 2026.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In that first-year budget, $170,000 is set aside for \u201cTJU Leadership,\u201d which includes supporting the salaries for Jefferson\u2019s president, general counsel, vice president of marketing, as well as the dean of its College of Health Professions.<\/p>\n

Another $130,000 is set aside for \u201cOther system leadership,\u201d including some of the university\u2019s executive officers.<\/p>\n

Additionally, the budget sets aside $550,000 to support the salaries for 12 members of the Sidney Kimmel Medical College leadership team.<\/p>\n

Asked if the budget lines for executive leadership within the university would continue in further years, a spokesperson for the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) said \u201cbudget categories for future years will be finalized as annual work plans and budgets are developed.\u201d<\/p>\n

A spokesperson for Jefferson said in an email that the first two years of the program would be focused on securing accreditation for the medical branch campus, purchasing equipment, as well as hiring staff.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Asked about the budget lines for executive leadership in future years, the spokesperson said \u201ccosts and budgets will vary by year.\u201d They also said leaders would play a \u201ccentral role\u201d in launching the campus, and that the Delaware campus would be \u201ccontinuously supported\u201d by the college\u2019s Philadelphia staff.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The spokesperson also said launching a new medical school \u201ctypically takes eight years,\u201d and that Jefferson is opening its branch campus in just two.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Thomas Jefferson University Delaware Medical School Contract<\/a> Download<\/a><\/p>\n

As for selecting a dean for the Delaware medical school, the contract says Jefferson must consult Gov. Matt Meyer\u2019s office before it makes a decision.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The contract also names a building on the University of Delaware\u2019s campus, Willard Hall, where students would do their preclinical training. According to the first year budget, the state will spend $12 million to renovate the building, located on Main Street in Newark across from the Trabant University Center.<\/p>\n

When asked about the renovation\u2019s impact on classroom space for non-medical school students, University President Laura Carlson said Willard Hall would serve as the primary location for the medical school.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe will maintain needed instructional space for existing courses and students, while carefully sequencing any moves to ensure all program needs are met,\u201d Carlson said in an emailed statement.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It is unclear if the university will continue to use the space for non-medical school classes.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The contract said Jefferson would be responsible for placing its students into hospitals for their clinical rotations, where students would do hands-on medical training, following their education at UD. That agreement also says the university and hospitals should work to expand medical residency opportunities in the state.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Beebe Healthcare in Lewes, Delaware. | SPOTLIGHT DELAWARE PHOTO BY NICK STONESIFER<\/p>\n

Hospitals like Bayhealth in Dover, Beebe Healthcare in Lewes, and Nemours Children\u2019s Hospital and Saint Francis Hospital in Wilmington were included in the initial group of hospitals set to host students.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Some questions still remain about whether Delaware\u2019s largest hospital system, ChristianaCare, would host students for clinical training after its failed attempt to run the medical school with the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine (PCOM).<\/p>\n

A spokesperson for ChristianaCare said in a statement the hospital is \u201cnot currently involved\u201d in discussions with the consortium of hospitals and higher education institutions running the medical school.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe remain open to conversations about how we can continue to support the state\u2019s vision for physician workforce development in Delaware,\u201d the ChristianaCare spokesperson said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

TidalHealth, which operates Seaford\u2019s Nanticoke Hospital, was not initially announced in the lineup of hospitals participating in the medical school.\u00a0<\/p>\n

And in a statement to Spotlight Delaware, the hospital said it too had not \u201cbeen in contact with the project\u2019s leaders,\u201d but that it looks forward to learning more about its potential role.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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TidalHealth Nanticoke hospital in Seaford. | SPOTLIGHT DELAWARE PHOTO BY JACOB OWENS<\/p>\n

\u201cTidalHealth is projected to become Delmarva\u2019s largest trainer of physicians, and we remain committed to rural graduate medical education as a way to recruit and retain practitioners in the communities we serve,\u201d a TidalHealth spokesperson said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The contract also carves out protections for an already existing partnership meant to place Delawareans into out-of-state medical school programs.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Delaware Institute of Medical Education and Research, better known as DIMER, places Delaware students into nearby medical schools like Jefferson and PCOM. Jefferson reserves 20 seats annually for Delawareans and PCOM reserves 10.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But after PCOM lost its bid to run Delaware\u2019s medical school, the future of DIMER came into question. The college, however, said it would continue to host Delaware students in the program.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Grading the bids<\/p>\n

Spotlight Delaware also obtained a copy of the state\u2019s bid reviews for all the applicants to run the state\u2019s first medical school. In that review, a panel of six judges scored the applications on financial sustainability, educational history and their commitment to the bid and its goals.<\/p>\n

That panel included a mix of state officials in the governor\u2019s office and at DHSS. The medical director of the Delaware Health Empowerment Coalition also sat on the scoring committee.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Additionally, the panel included the leader of the state\u2019s powerful hospital lobby, the Delaware Healthcare Association.<\/p>\n

Delaware received four bids to run the medical school, although only three were thoroughly considered. One of the bidders, the global consulting firm PriceWaterhouseCoopers, was \u201cunanimously\u201d disqualified from the bid because it did not meet necessary requirements.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Another bidder, Ponce Health Sciences University, is a private Puerto Rican medical school. The panel said Ponce had demonstrated success at its other branch campus in Missouri, but that it wasn\u2019t sure that could be transferred to Delaware.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The panel broadly agreed both PCOM and Jefferson, the two frontrunners to operate Delaware\u2019s medical school, had strong proposals. But some of the judges wrote that PCOM fell short in demonstrating how its plan for operations would benefit rural Delaware.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cBidder is deeply entwined with [ChristianaCare]. While this partnership creates a strong connection to Delaware, it largely serves NCC not the rural two counties defined in this RFP,\u201d Dava Newnam, a deputy director at DHSS, wrote of PCOM\u2019s bid.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Medical School Partnership Bid Review<\/a>Download<\/a><\/p>\n

The bid review also said PCOM considered hosting the medical school on Delaware State University\u2019s campus in Dover.\u00a0<\/p>\n

For Jefferson, the panel lauded the university\u2019s proposal and its already longstanding presence in Delaware. Kevin Myers, a panelist from the governor\u2019s office, requested \u201cadditional detail\u201d about the university\u2019s commitment to rural primary care, but he otherwise supported its proposal.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Myers questioned the university\u2019s proposed budget and its intended use of the funds, but he said Jefferson had given \u201csolid evidence\u201d of sustainability following the five-year federal award.<\/p>\n

The bid review also said that among all of the bidders, Jefferson had the \u201cstrongest endorsement\u201d from the state\u2019s rural healthcare systems.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThese partnerships will be absolutely essential in the success of the medical school,\u201d Myers wrote.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Contracts and internal reviews obtained by Spotlight Delaware reveal new details about how the state will stand up…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":242680,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[104025,68340,8056,69,71,70,59137,42274,52612],"class_list":["post-242679","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-philadelphia","tag-delaware-medical-school","tag-medical-residency","tag-medical-school","tag-philadelphia","tag-philadelphia-headlines","tag-philadelphia-news","tag-rural-health-transformation-program","tag-thomas-jefferson-university","tag-university-of-delaware"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/242679","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=242679"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/242679\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/242680"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=242679"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=242679"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=242679"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}