Encompass Health’s rehabilitation hospital in Henrico County. (Jack Jacobs photo)
A national rehab hospital operator wants to increase the bed count at its Henrico-based facility, after completing an expansion project there several years ago.
Encompass Health intends to request regulatory approval from the state to add 20 beds to its inpatient rehabilitation hospital at 5700 Fitzhugh Ave., according to a notice the company submitted this month to the Virginia Department of Health.
The Encompass hospital currently has 40 beds and provides rehabilitative care for people who’ve suffered hip fractures, strokes and other medical conditions. The 75,000-square-foot facility, which is owned by the company, occupies a 6-acre property near the intersection of Libbie Avenue and West Broad Street.
Further details on the project, such as its anticipated cost and whether the facility would be expanded to accommodate the beds, were unavailable this week. An Encompass spokeswoman declined to comment for this article.
Encompass soon plans to file its application seeking approval of the additional beds to the state’s Certificate of Public Need program. In Virginia, certain medical facilities and equipment require state approval before they can be established.
The neurological and orthopedic rehab facility is Encompass’ only Richmond-area hospital. According to online records, the company completed a 10,000-square-foot expansion of the facility in 2021. Encompass also operates a hospital at 95 Medical Park Blvd. in Petersburg.
Encompass describes itself as the largest owner and operator of rehab hospitals in the country, with more than 160 hospitals across 38 states and Puerto Rico. The company, formerly known as HealthSouth Corp., is based in Alabama.
Encompass’ moves to expand its local facility’s bed count comes as Goochland-based rehab hospital Sheltering Arms Institute has a similar project to increase its bed capacity in the works. Last month, orthopedics provider OrthoVirginia consolidated two offices in a new location near Westchester Commons in Chesterfield.