U.S. Health Systems Accelerate Shift Toward All-Electric Hospitals

Major U.S. health systems are increasingly incorporating electrification into hospital construction and redevelopment projects as healthcare organizations look to reduce emissions, improve energy efficiency and strengthen the resilience of critical facilities. UCI Health, Kaiser Permanente, Henry Ford Health and Baptist Health South Florida are among the systems developing hospitals designed to operate entirely or predominantly on electricity.

• UCI Health-Irvine is the largest all-electric acute care hospital in the U.S.
• The 144-bed California facility opened in December 2025 and uses electricity rather than fossil fuels for normal operations.
• Kaiser Permanente is developing all-electric hospitals in California and Oregon, with several projects scheduled to open by 2029.
• Kaiser estimates its San Jose project could reduce annual emissions by as much as 48% compared with a conventional gas-heated hospital.
• Henry Ford Health is developing a 432-bed electric-capable hospital in Detroit.
• Baptist Health South Florida plans to open Florida’s first all-electric hospital in Sunrise in 2029.
• Hospitals are combining electrification with solar power, batteries, heat pumps and other energy technologies.

UCI Health Leads the Electrification Push

UCI Health-Irvine has emerged as one of the most prominent examples of an all-electric hospital in the United States.

The Irvine campus includes a 144-bed acute care hospital, a comprehensive cancer center and ambulatory care building, and an advanced care center. The facility was designed without a conventional fossil-fuel-powered central plant for normal operations.

The decision came after the University of California established a policy requiring new and renovated buildings to avoid fossil fuels for space and water heating. UCI Health could have sought an exemption because of the specialized requirements of healthcare facilities, but instead proceeded with an all-electric design.

The hospital uses heat recovery chillers, heat pumps and electric resistance heaters to provide heating and hot water. The approach eliminates the need to operate and maintain a conventional natural-gas-fired steam plant.

Solar panels installed on the campus parking structures were designed to supply approximately 10% of the site’s annual energy demand, with the remainder coming through procured clean electricity.

Electrification Changes Hospital Energy Use

Moving from gas to electricity changes where a hospital’s emissions are generated.

An all-electric facility eliminates most Scope 1 emissions, which come directly from fuel burned on-site. Its environmental footprint then depends more heavily on the electricity used to operate the facility, meaning the cleanliness of the power supply becomes increasingly important.

UCI Health has paired electrification with clean power procurement. The UC system’s utility program has supplied 100% clean electricity since 2018, according to UCI Health’s sustainability reporting.

The health system has also reported a reduction of more than 45% in carbon emissions since 2019, while replacing fossil-fuel infrastructure and expanding electric transportation and charging capacity.

Reliability Remains a Critical Requirement

Hospitals cannot sacrifice reliability when changing their energy systems. Critical care facilities require continuous electricity for medical equipment, heating and cooling, ventilation, sterilization and other essential operations.

UCI Health-Irvine therefore includes redundant systems designed to maintain operations during power disruptions. The hospital has a diesel emergency generator capable of supplying the entire campus for more than 96 hours, while its normal electricity supply comes from renewable sources and solar generation.

The facility also uses monitoring systems that allow its energy infrastructure to respond to changing conditions, including heat waves, patient surges and disruptions to utility service.

Kaiser Permanente Expands Electric Hospital Plans

Kaiser Permanente is developing several all-electric hospitals as part of its broader sustainability strategy.

The health system is replacing hospitals with all-electric facilities in San Jose and Sacramento, California, and Clackamas, Oregon. The projects are expected to open by 2029.

Kaiser’s Sunnyside Medical Center project in Oregon will be a seven-story, 615,000-square-foot hospital tower. The health system describes it as Oregon’s first fully electric and sustainable hospital and plans to seek LEED Gold certification.

The projects will eliminate natural gas use for routine heating and cooling while incorporating other technologies designed to reduce energy consumption.

Kaiser says its two California hospitals under construction will avoid approximately 8 million pounds of air pollution annually by eliminating natural gas use for heating and cooling.

San Jose Project Combines Solar and Battery Storage

Kaiser’s San Jose hospital is also being designed around on-site renewable energy and storage.

A lifecycle analysis conducted for the project found that an all-electric hospital equipped with solar generation and battery storage could reduce annual emissions by up to 48% compared with a traditional gas-heated hospital. The analysis estimated that the system could pay for itself within approximately seven years under the modeled conditions.

The health system has already deployed renewable energy infrastructure elsewhere. Its Ontario Medical Center in Southern California has a hospital-based microgrid with 2 megawatts of solar generation and 9 megawatt-hours of battery storage. The system can provide emergency power for up to 10 continuous hours before diesel generators are required.

Other Health Systems Follow

Kaiser and UCI Health are not alone in moving toward electrified hospital infrastructure.

Henry Ford Health is redeveloping its Detroit campus with a new 432-bed hospital designed to eventually operate fully on electricity. The facility is expected to open in 2029.

Because of Detroit’s wide seasonal temperature variations, the hospital will initially retain some natural-gas capacity. Gas will supplement electric heat pumps during the most demanding periods, with the health system expecting to transition to full electrification over the following decade.

The project demonstrates that hospital electrification does not necessarily mean every facility will immediately eliminate fossil-fuel infrastructure. Climate, grid capacity, emergency requirements and existing infrastructure can all affect the design.

Florida Plans Its First All-Electric Hospital

Baptist Health South Florida is taking a similar approach in a very different climate.

The health system plans to open what it describes as Florida’s first all-electric hospital in Sunrise in 2029. The facility is being designed with environmental considerations specific to its location near sensitive ecosystems and surrounding communities.

The hospital will include more than 1 megawatt of solar capacity, along with a solar hot-water system. Electric water heaters and localized electric steam generators will supplement the solar system.

Electricity Costs Remain a Consideration

The transition away from natural gas does not eliminate financial considerations.

Electricity prices can rise as overall demand increases, while the U.S. power grid requires significant investment to accommodate new loads. Hospitals therefore need to consider both energy prices and the capital required to install electric heating, cooling, storage and generation systems.

At UCI Health-Irvine, administrators have sought to manage that exposure through clean-power procurement and energy-efficient design. The hospital’s energy system uses heat recovery and heat pumps to reduce the amount of electricity required for heating and hot water.

Healthcare’s Sustainability Challenge

The move toward electric hospitals comes as healthcare organizations face growing pressure to reduce their environmental footprint.

The U.S. healthcare sector accounts for approximately 9% of national greenhouse gas emissions, according to figures cited by Fierce Healthcare. Hospitals are particularly energy-intensive because they operate continuously and require substantial heating, cooling, ventilation, sterilization and medical equipment.

Electrification is therefore becoming one component of broader sustainability programs that also include renewable energy, energy efficiency, waste reduction, sustainable procurement and lower-emission transportation.

For hospitals, the transition must balance emissions reductions with reliability, patient safety and operating costs. The projects underway at UCI Health, Kaiser Permanente, Henry Ford Health and Baptist Health show how health systems are testing different combinations of electrification, renewable power, storage and backup systems as they redesign the energy infrastructure supporting modern healthcare.

U.S. Health Systems are increasingly exploring all-electric hospital designs as healthcare organizations look for ways to reduce fossil-fuel dependence, improve energy efficiency, and strengthen long-term sustainability. Recent projects show that electrification is moving from an experimental concept toward a practical hospital-development strategy.

U.S. Health Systems Embrace All-Electric Designs

U.S. Health Systems are beginning to incorporate electric heating, cooling, hot-water systems, and other building infrastructure into new hospital projects. One prominent example is UCI Health — Irvine, which opened in December 2025 as the nation’s first all-electric acute-care hospital.

The development demonstrates how modern hospitals can be designed around electricity while maintaining backup systems for emergencies and uninterrupted patient care.

U.S. Health Systems face significant energy demands because hospitals operate around the clock and require substantial heating, cooling, ventilation, lighting, and medical equipment. Electrification can help organizations reduce direct fossil-fuel consumption, particularly when electricity is increasingly supplied by lower-carbon sources.

For healthcare leaders, sustainability is increasingly connected with operational planning rather than being treated solely as an environmental initiative.

U.S. Health Systems Invest in Resilience

U.S. Health Systems are also examining how electrification can work alongside microgrids, battery storage, renewable energy, and advanced energy-management systems. These technologies can provide additional resilience when hospitals face grid disruptions or extreme weather events.

Smart energy infrastructure can also give hospital operators greater visibility into energy consumption and help identify opportunities for efficiency improvements.

U.S. Health Systems Face Implementation Challenges

Moving to an all-electric hospital is not without challenges. Healthcare facilities require extremely reliable power, and electrification can involve major upfront investments in building systems, electrical infrastructure, backup generation, and grid capacity.

Existing hospitals may face additional complications because retrofitting older buildings can be more difficult than incorporating electric systems during new construction. Industry experts therefore increasingly emphasize phased implementation, digital energy management, and careful infrastructure planning.

U.S. Health Systems Expand the Sustainability Movement

U.S. Health Systems are not limiting sustainability efforts to new construction. Programs such as New York’s Empire Building Challenge Hospitals Program are supporting projects involving electrification, energy efficiency, and electrification-readiness upgrades in existing hospital buildings.

The broader trend suggests that hospital sustainability is evolving toward integrated strategies combining efficient building design, electrification, renewable energy, storage, and resilient infrastructure.

U.S. Health Systems and the Future of Hospitals

U.S. Health Systems could increasingly treat electrification as a core component of future hospital planning. As energy technologies improve and healthcare organizations face growing pressure to control operating costs and environmental impact, all-electric facilities may become more common in new hospital construction.

The transition will require significant planning, but early projects are providing valuable lessons for healthcare organizations seeking cleaner, more efficient, and resilient facilities.

U.S. Health Systems Expand Electrification Projects

U.S. Health Systems are moving beyond sustainability goals and incorporating electrification into major hospital construction and redevelopment plans. UCI Health-Irvine opened in December 2025 as the nation’s first all-electric acute-care hospital, providing a real-world example of how a full-service medical facility can operate without natural-gas infrastructure.

Other U.S. Health Systems are now following with large-scale projects. Kaiser Permanente is developing all-electric hospitals in Sacramento, San Jose, and Clackamas, Oregon, with projects scheduled to open by 2029. Baptist Health South Florida is also planning an all-electric hospital in Sunrise.

U.S. Health Systems Combine Electricity With Renewable Energy

For U.S. Health Systems, electrification can become more valuable when combined with solar generation, battery storage, microgrids, and intelligent energy-management systems. These technologies can help hospitals manage electricity demand while improving resilience during grid disruptions.

Kaiser Permanente’s San Jose project, for example, found that an all-electric design incorporating solar and battery storage could potentially reduce annual emissions by up to 48% compared with a conventional gas-heated hospital.