President appropriates $120M for VA hospital in Tulsa

TULSA, Okla. (KTUL) – The president has appropriated $120 million to fund a veterans' hospital in Tulsa.

The project – a 275,000-square-foot, 58-bed medical-surgical hospital – is expected to cost $173 million to construct where the Kerr Edmondson Building stands, next to the Oklahoma State University Medical Center.

The city will kick in $8 million, and the remaining funds will come from private donors, according to a news release sent Monday from public relations firm Schnake Turnbo Frank.

Oklahoma’s congressional delegation championed the project, which is getting funding in the FY 2021 budget submitted to Congress.

“I am proud of Oklahomans uniting together to serve our veterans more effectively and efficiently,” Gov. Kevin Stitt said in a news release “This hospital will be a perfect use of the Kerr Edmondson buildings, and the partnership with OSU Medicine will ensure greater access to specialty physicians. This is a true example of how we can leverage public-private partnerships in order to ensure we are providing our veterans with the quality care and support they deserve, and I am thankful for the collaboration of all involved, especially U.S. Senators Inhofe and Lankford.”

Officials haven’t released renderings or a timeline for construction.

The hospital will be operated by the Veterans Health Administration, which currently operates an outpatient clinic, dental clinic and behavioral medicine clinic in Tulsa.

Existing VA hospitals in the state are in Muskogee and Oklahoma City.