In a celebratory milestone that has been decades in the making, elected officials, medical, civic and business leaders and community stakeholders gathered Oct. 21 in Easton to break ground for the construction of the University of Maryland Shore Regional Medical Center.

The new $540 million state-of-the-art medical complex at 10000 Longwoods Road, part of University of Maryland Shore Regional Health (UM SRH), is anticipated to open in 2028.

Held at the Talbot County Community Center adjacent to the construction site, the groundbreaking event was hosted by Mohan Suntha, MD, MBA, UMMS president and CEO, and Ken Kozel, MBA, FACHE, president and CEO of UM SRH.

The new health center is expected to have 325,294 square feet of acute-care services as well as 60,000 square feet in an adjacent medical office and outpatient services building.

UM SRH includes UM Shore Medical Center at Chestertown, UM Shore Medical Center at Easton. UM Shore Emergency Center at Cambridge, UM Shore Emergency Center at Queenstown, and outpatient care facilities and services located throughout Caroline, Dorchester, Kent, Queen Anne's and Talbot counties. The new UM Shore Regional Medical Center will replace the current hospital in Easton.