Alice L. Walton Foundation buys 100 acres for future health care campus
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Walmart heir Alice Walton's foundation announced Tuesday that it will build health care facilities — starting with cardiac services — on a 100-acre campus in Bentonville.
Why it matters: Northwest Arkansas needs more health care services for its growing population — and heart disease is the leading cause of death both nationally and in Arkansas, according to the CDC.
- The move is the latest in Walton's efforts to transform American health care and majorly boost the health care sector in NWA.
State of play: The foundation purchased 100 acres just west of Interstate 49 about two miles from downtown Bentonville for the new campus. Specifics on what will be built and which services will be offered are still to be determined.
- But foundation spokesperson Diane Carroll told Axios that the foundation plans to open a cardiac center there in 2028.
Context: The Alice L. Walton Foundation, Mercy Health System and Heartland Whole Health Institute last fall announced a 30-year agreement to boost cardiac care. Mercy committed $350 million, which will include building space at its existing Rogers hospital. The foundation committed $350 million to construct new facilities and recruit doctors.
- The organizations also have a 10-year agreement with Cleveland Clinic, which will act as a consultant.
- Cardiovascular care is one of the region's most mature specialty care offerings but has room to grow, making it well positioned to take it to world-class care, Mercy Arkansas president Ryan Gehrig previously told Axios.
How it works: The campus and the project are separate from the new four-year medical school, the Alice L. Walton School of Medicine, that's already under construction near the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and set to open in July. However, medical students may do rotations at the newly announced campus, Carroll said.
- It's also separate from the Heartland Whole Health Institute, Alice Walton's nonprofit that largely focuses on health care policy. The institute's building is also under construction near Crystal Bridges.
The big picture: Making NWA a health care hub has been a goal of community leaders and health care organizations at least since 2019, when the Northwest Arkansas Council released a report detailing how the region was missing out on about $950 million a year bear because of people spending money on services elsewhere and traveling for health care.
- Not only were residents leaving for health care but NWA was not attracting patients from outside the region. One of the biggest culprits was a lack of specialty care services, like cardiology.