UVM Medical Center wins approval to buy Fanny Allen Campus

The Green Mountain Care Board has approved University of Vermont Medical Center’s request to purchase the Fanny Allen campus in Colchester.

The medical center has long operated clinics on the 22-acre property, but it has been leasing the space from Covenant Health, a Catholic health care system, since the 1990s.

“The Board’s approval of our application should serve as reassurance to thousands of patients that they will continue to receive the care they need without interruption and reaffirms the central role this historic campus continues to play for both UVM Medical Center and patients across our region who rely on the Fanny Allen campus for essential care,” said Dr. Stephen Leffler, the medical center’s president and chief operating officer, in a press release Friday.

Facilities at Fanny Allen include offices and clinics for surgery, rehabilitation, lab work, and urgent care. UVM Medical Center now pays roughly $1.7 million annually for the leased space.

Officials said that by buying the campus for $17.3 million, the medical center expects to save $6.1 million over a 15-year financing period.

In Vermont, the state’s health care regulatory panel, the Green Mountain Care Board, must approve a “certificate of need” before providers can undertake new health care projects as a precaution against the “unnecessary duplication” of services, according to the board’s website.

UVM Medical Center applied for a certificate in January after Covenant Health agreed to sell the campus.

UVM Medical Center had to demonstrate to the board that the project cost was reasonable, financially stable and would not impact affordability for patients. It also had to show that the purchase would serve the public good and improve either the quality of care or accessibility to care for Vermonters, according to the release.

The medical center will have to file routine reports concerning campus operations, including current and long-term building plans, renovations, or changes to building use. This also includes “financial updates regarding the tax-exempt bond used to finance the purchase,” the release said.

The center stated in its release that private practice offices on campus will be unaffected by the sale and continue regular operations.

“Fanny Allen is critical to ensuring continued access to care, but it does not solve all of our needs,” said Leffler, adding that the purchase is “just one aspect of our long-term facilities plan, which includes major investments for new construction, as well as renovations and updates to existing Medical Center facilities.”

The center is still awaiting the board’s decision on an application submitted in 2023 for the construction of a “ multispecialty outpatient surgery center” in South Burlington, a facility Leffler has characterized as “a must-have.” The estimated cost is about $130 million.

Read the story on VTDigger here: UVM Medical Center wins approval to buy Fanny Allen Campus .