Piedmont Healthcare in Atlanta plans to use a $75 million gift to build a specialty heart center that it hopes would be on par with the Cleveland Clinic Heart Center.
The gift came from a foundation created by Home Depot co-founder Bernie Marcus. It is the second-largest donation given to a U.S. community hospital, Piedmont said in a news release.
The system will build the Marcus Heart and Vascular Center with the aim to make it a state destination for specialized heart care. The gift kicks off a $150 million capital campaign.
The center also is expected to expand Piedmont's ability to participate in and lead cardiovascular research studies and share its work with other national experts in cardiovascular care, according to the release.
Piedmont CEO Kevin Brown told Georgia Health News that the goal is to create a “destination” heart program similar to Cleveland Clinic's renowned heart center, which attracts patients from around the world.
The six-hospital Piedmont system is one of Atlanta's largest regional healthcare providers.
The $75 million gift from The Marcus Foundation is Piedmont's second in four years. In 2012, the foundation gave Piedmont $20 million to create a heart valve center.
