Lisa LaPlante, chief administrative officer at Evergreen Health Monroe, told the Monroe City Council on July 8 that the public hospital district has seen rapid growth in patient volumes and specialty services even as hospitals statewide face lingering financial pressures.

“We are one of two hospitals in the state that are actually profitable. It is Evergreen Health Monroe and Children’s Hospital,” LaPlante said, noting the hospital’s affiliation with Evergreen Health in Kirkland but stressing separate governance and finances.

Leaders said the Monroe hospital’s catchment spans much of Snohomish County and has outgrown parts of an aging facility originally built in 1925. Chief Nursing Officer Megan Wersching said the emergency department is a 14‑bed unit that now sees about 60 to 80 patients a day and that inpatient volumes and surgical and outpatient specialty care have grown markedly since 2020.

The presentations emphasized three drivers: the hospital’s affiliation with Evergreen Health Medical Group, adoption of a single electronic medical record (Epic), and recruitment of specialty providers. Wersching cited new and expanding services including cardiology (opened October 2023), ear‑nose‑throat (opened fall 2024), expanded gastroenterology and plans for urology and neurology this fall. She also said the hospital added a Mako robot to support joint replacement surgery.

Hospital leaders described financial stewardship amid sectorwide cost pressures: statewide hospitals continue to experience higher wages, travel‑nurse costs and supply inflation, LaPlante said, but Evergreen Health Monroe reported a net position “in the black” year‑to‑date and said it now holds more than 200 days cash on hand. That financial position has enabled a roughly $9.5 million capital program this year, they said.

To address capacity and the facility’s age, the presenters outlined a master facility planning process begun in 2023 that recommends a phased approach: Phase 1 focuses on building capacity “in place” — adding three to four temporary ED rooms, bringing four progressive/acute beds online (including re‑opening a critical care unit), adding a second CT scanner and laboratory analyzer, and other near‑term projects. Phase 2 would expand access across the district; Phase 3 would examine a replacement hospital over a 10‑ to 20‑year horizon.

LaPlante also told the council the hospital is acquiring the Sky River medical office building this month to gain local control of clinic space and to free adjacent land for expansion; the hospital also intends to re‑acquire land adjacent to the Puget Sound Kidney Center for growth. Wersching said these moves buy time for planning and for staging construction while keeping the ED and surgery open.

Council members asked about staffing, traveler nurses and the former birthing unit. LaPlante explained that traveler (contract) staff rose dramatically during and after COVID and cost roughly two to three times regular wages, and Wersching said the old birthing area is currently shelved for education and simulation but could be evaluated for future obstetrics services. No council action was taken; the presentation was an informational update and hospital leaders said they will return with further planning milestones.

The council thanked Evergreen Health Monroe for the update and for acquiring adjacent properties that staff said will support the district’s phased expansion.