Gov. Brian Kemp tours the new Marcus Tower at Piedmont Hospital on July 14.
The State of Georgia and Piedmont Healthcare have entered a partnership to provide additional hospital beds to treat COVID-19 patients.
Gov. Brian P. Kemp joined Kevin Brown, President and CEO of Piedmont Healthcare for a tour of the new Marcus Tower at the Piedmont Hospital Atlanta campus on July 14. The tower officially opens today.
“I’m very grateful to Kevin Brown and the entire Piedmont Healthcare team for their willingness to partner with the state of Georgia and provide this critical resource to patients and surrounding hospitals,” Kemp said. “These hospital beds will provide additional surge capacity for healthcare facilities in metro-Atlanta and ensure COVID-19 patients receive the essential care they need.”
The partnership includes initial usage of 62 beds, with the capability to scale up based on demand. Kemp has also reactivated the field hospital at the Georgia World Congress Center in Downtown as COVID-19 cases surge.
Today, July 15, patients from the third floor of the existing Piedmont Atlanta Hospital were moved into the Marcus Tower. This created additional capacity for patients who will be treated in that vacated third floor space. The beds will be staffed by physicians and other personnel provided by the state.
The tower was made possible through an initial donation of $75 million from Bernie and Billi Marcus via The Marcus Foundation. Local philanthropists Brett and Louise Samsky and their son Connor have made an $18 million donation to establish the tower’s Brett and Louise Samsky Lobby and the Samsky Invasive Cardiovascular Services Center.
Piedmont was able to open the tower early thanks in part to a $1 million gift from Rooms to Go Founder, President and CEO Jeff Seaman.
