Vail Health Continues to Innovate as Rural Health Care Competes With Rising Overhead Costs

During the Annual State of Vail Health presentation, President & CEO Will Cook addressed the community about the hospital’s performance in 2024 and priorities for 2025. Despite widespread financial challenges affecting Colorado’s rural hospitals, with expenses 40% higher than pre-Covid levels, Vail Health maintained stability with 250 days of cash reserves and achieved top-quartile employee engagement scores nationally.

The hospital completed significant infrastructure projects, including the 90-unit Fox Hollow employee housing development and the Precourt Healing Center, a 28-bed inpatient behavioral health facility opening in May. The Wiegers Mental Health Clinic demonstrated strong community impact, averaging over 4,000 visits monthly in 2024.

Vail Health strengthened its position as a leader in medical research, with the Steadman Clinic becoming the most published group in hip arthroscopy and the Steadman Philippon Research Institute securing eight national research grants. The hospital also launched innovative behavioral health studies, including research on cold therapy and psilocybin for depression treatment.

Looking ahead, Cook outlined plans to expand community health services, including taking over crisis response and school-based clinician work from Your Hope Center. The hospital is actively addressing challenges such as growing numbers of uninsured patients and exploring partnerships with other independent hospitals to maintain specialty care services in the rural community.

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