UCI Health has announced plans to build a world-class, acute care hospital on the northern edge of the University of California, Irvine academic campus.

The 144-bed hospital joins the previously approved UCI Health Center for Advanced Care to create the new UCI Medical Center Irvine-Newport, a full-service academic health complex that will bring a broad spectrum of the most advanced healthcare services to coastal and southern Orange County, including access to the hundreds of clinical trials underway at UCI Health. The medical center will connect with the UCI Health primary care network throughout Orange County, including its newest clinic in Newport Beach, creating the region’s only health system supported by one of the nation’s premier academic research institutions.

The hospital, set for completion in 2025, will focus on key clinical programs such as oncology, neurology, neurosurgery, orthopedics and digestive health and will include a 24-hour emergency department. Costs for the complete project are expected to exceed $1 billion, funded by philanthropic donations, retained earnings and revenue from UCI Health operations. The project already has received philanthropic funding and will continue to seek further investment from community partners.

Chad T. Lefteris is the Chief Executive Officer of UCI Health. He oversees Orange County’s only academic medical center and all clinical and patient-serving operations, including the UCI Medical Center in Orange and ambulatory sites across the county. Lefteris joined UCI Health on December 2018 as the Chief Operating Officer.

In that role, Lefteris oversaw the daily business operations of the UCI Medical Center, which includes the hospital and several specialty units, along with other UCI-operated health care centers throughout Orange County. He was also responsible for administrative functions, including general and ancillary support services, facilities management, design and construction, information technology, and special projects.