IU Health is expanding the services it offers in Nashville, with plans to open a new health center next summer.
Chip Johnson is IU Health Southern Indiana Physicians chief practice provider. He said the new facility is an expansion of primary care services already offered in Nashville, and IU Health has operated for years in a building on Willow Street, adjacent to the YMCA.
But he said they've seen an increase in demand over time.
“You have individuals that might live in more rural communities, that doesn't mean they should have less access," he said.
Brown County resident participation in Medicaid is up from 2,100 in April 2016 to 3,300 in April 2023.
Read more: Number of Hoosiers without health insurance declines
Johnson said IU Health will add orthopedic services at the new health center too, so people who have follow-up appointments from orthopedic surgeries don’t have to travel to Bloomington.
He added they have three healthcare providers to see patients in Nashville now and started walk-in services in January, which will continue at the new facility.
"What we found when we opened walk-in hours, it really helps meet the needs of community members that might not be able to schedule an appointment during normal business hours."
Through September of this year, IU Health says it’s had 6,500 visits at its Nashville office — 700 of which were walk-ins.
Official construction will start this month on the project, being done as a partnership between IU Health, the Brown County YMCA, community leaders and the Borgelt family.
