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The Hospital and Health System Association of Pennsylvania, in its annual economic impact report, has credited St. Luke’s Lehighton Campus with providing a $128.5 million economic benefit to the Greater Lehigh Valley Region.

“More than 1,100 people in Carbon County work for St. Luke’s Lehighton Campus,” says St. Luke’s Lehighton Campus president John Nespoli. “And more travel into Lehighton to work. This campus and all those people support local business. They eat at local restaurants. They get gas at local stations. And the hospital uses many vendors from the area for everything from signage to supplies to the milk we get from local dairies.”

St. Luke’s Lehighton Campus (formerly the Gnaden Huetten Campus) features advanced inpatient and outpatient services along with specialty services in the Hospital and surrounding outpatient and Care Now locations. Patients benefit from emergency room services, surgical services, adult and older adult behavioral health services, radiology, lab services and more.

“St. Luke’s Lehighton Campus has to be in the top three businesses in the area when it comes to positive economic impact on the region,” adds Nespoli. “What’s more, this study only applies to St. Luke’s Lehighton Campus. If all 20 outpatient sites throughout the county were also included, the economic impact would double. And when our new hospital opens in 10 months, I’m anticipating adding even more employees which will only increase our impact. That’s what happens when you keep care close to home… everybody wins.”

During fiscal year 2019, the Pennsylvania hospital and health system community contributed $143 billion to state and local economies, a 5 percent increase compared to the previous year. The hospital community also directly and indirectly supported more than 660,000 jobs. The statewide, regional, and hospital-specific data tell a powerful story about the critical role hospitals and health systems play across the commonwealth.

HAP derives the economic impact data from Medicare Cost Report data, hospital and health system reports to HAP and the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry. Multipliers to calculate ripple effects come from the Bureau of Economic Analysis at the U.S. Department of Commerce.