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Maryland Hospital Association urges full funding of 22 hospital capital projects as DLS proposes a $5 million cut
Summary
The Maryland Hospital Association told the Capital Budget Subcommittee it supports funding 22 hospital capital grant projects totaling roughly $22.6 million and urged the committee to reject a DLS recommendation to remove $5 million that would cut projects with state shares under 15%.
Victoria Martinez, budget analyst, presented the Department of Legislative Services analysis of the Maryland Hospital Association’s capital grant program and said the FY26 capital budget includes roughly $22.0–$22.7 million in G.O. bonds for 22 projects under the private hospital grant program. Martinez said Exhibit 3 shows an increase in proposed funding following recent legislation allowing the governor to include up to $20,000,000 for the program.
Jane Krenke, representing the Maryland Hospital Association, told the subcommittee the 22 recommended projects support maternal health, primary-care access, surgical services and improvements to behavioral-health care environments. "We are in strong support of these 22 hospital projects, totaling $22,600,000," Krenke said, and asked the committee to maintain the recommended funding levels.
DLS recommended reducing the FY26 appropriation by $5,000,000 by removing 12 projects whose state share is less than 15 percent; DLS argued projects with a small state share are less dependent on state participation and funding them demonstrates limited prioritization. According to the analyst, eliminating those projects would reduce the appropriation to $17.7 million. Krenke said the DLS recommendation would harm small independent and rural hospitals and that all projects were vetted by the hospital bond review committee and have local delegation support.
Committee members questioned how a cut would affect prioritization and whether state funding helps hospitals leverage private fundraising. Krenke said even modest state contributions help secure local support and private funds and noted many projects are emergency-department renovations to improve behavioral-health capacity for youth and young adults. She added that shovel readiness is a key criterion for the program and that most grants are expected to expend the majority of funding within the appropriation year.
Krenke also noted three requested amendments submitted as part of testimony: projects for Atlantic General, Luminis Health Doctors Community Hospital and Shady Grove Medical Center (Aventis Healthcare). The subcommittee did not take a formal vote during the presentation and the DLS recommendation remained a committee record to consider in later actions.
