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The health care community is a significant economic force in the Capital Region. More than $500 million in active investment is currently under way within the Baton Rouge Health District alone, reflecting major commitments to physical facilities, new technologies and workforce innovation. In the process, the region is positioning itself as a significant national health care corridor for vital research and groundbreaking treatments.
Ochsner Health
Ochsner Health is expected to wrap up this spring on a $50 million investment in the region, which includes expansion of its hospital on O’Neal Lane and The Grove near the Mall of Louisiana. The health system will add more specialized care options and increase the number of patients it serves. At the Grove alone, the number of operating rooms will double, with the addition of a cardiac catheterization lab, advanced imaging space, expanded primary care, and services specific to OB-GYN, pediatric and musculoskeletal care. The fifth floor of The Grove will be a dedicated OB-GYN and pediatrics space, adding 30 new exam and treatment rooms. The emergency room and interventional radiology services at O’Neal will expand to reduce patient wait times and improve the overall care experience.
FMOL Health
The newly renamed FMOL Health has approved more than $425 million in capital projects at its Our Lady of the Lake Health campus, with a quarter-billion dollars allocated to projects in the Baton Rouge market alone. The money is earmarked for the expansion of the emergency department at Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center, development of new ambulatory properties, enhancements at Ollie Steele Burden Manor and the Tau Center, development of additional medical office buildings, and new overnight observational beds at the hospital’s Livingston campus.
Pennington Biomedical Research Center
Recent investments by Pennington Biomedical Research Center include a new bioinformatics and computational biology facility and the launch of a bariatric/metabolic surgery program. Additionally, research funding has been allocated for research into childhood obesity, Type 2 diabetes and the cardiovascular risks of poor sleep. Additionally, Pennington invested some $5.9 million in 2019 to establish the Bariatric and Metabolic Institute.
Baton Rouge General Medical Center
Baton Rouge General recently invested in a 60,000-square-foot patient care unit expansion at its Bluebonnet campus, which added two floors and 64 patient rooms to the existing hospital. The hospital has made several other significant investments in recent years, including a new $50 million neighborhood hospital in Livingston Parish—announced in October 2024—a $12 million expansion and renovation of the Center for Health at its Bluebonnet campus, a $30 million, 10-bed neighborhood hospital in Prairieville, and a $40 million, 65,000-square-foot expansion of its critical care tower on Bluebonnet.
Woman’s Hospital
Anchored by its $350 million, 13-year-old campus in Baton Rouge, Woman’s Hospital is in growth mode as well, most recently investing in an $8 million inpatient perinatal mental health unit that opened in 2024. The hospital is also developing a specialized unit for pregnant and postpartum women experiencing mental health crises.
Behavioral health centers
There are a handful of new behavioral health centers across the Capital Region, including a new Avenues Recovery Center and an expanded adolescent unit at River Place Behavioral Health. Additionally, Oceans Behavioral Hospital Baton Rouge opened in 2021, expanding access to behavioral health services. The new Avenues Recovery Center location opened in late 2024, marking the company’s third addiction rehabilitation center in Louisiana.
Across the region
A host of new medical facilities and expansions are planned in the surrounding parishes as well—Baton Rouge General recently announced plans to open a new 40,000-square-foot neighborhood hospital in Denham Springs. Additionally, Livingston HealthCare is planning a new 125,000-square-foot critical access hospital. In Ascension Parish, Mary Bird Perkins Ascension Cancer Center in Gonzales is adding 15 new semiprivate infusion and chemotherapy bays, while Baton Rouge General Ascension has plans to build a 40,000-square-foot neighborhood hospital in Prairieville.
This story is part of Business Report‘s Capital Assets edition. Get the entire 2026 Capital Assets edition.
