Grinnell- A new study shows UnityPoint Health – Grinnell Regional Medical Center (GRMC) is having a significant economic impact on the community in addition to providing health care services for patients from a six-county rural region.

Toledo medical clinics operated by UnityPoint Health- Marshalltown and UnityPoint-Grinnell Regional Medical Center combined services from one location on July 8, 2019. They merged operations into the UPH- Marshalltown location at1307 South Broadway. The operate as UnityPoint Health Family Medicine Tama/Toledo.

The 401 S. 1st Avenue UnityPoint- GRMC Deer Creek location was clsoed and has continues to be offered for sale.

Iowa Hospital Association’s indicates GRMC had a $36 million dollar impact on the local economy and generated almost 600 jobs, direct and indirect. At the same time GRMC employees spend more than $7 million with local retailers and pay more than $500,000 in sales tax on those items.

“GRMC is an integral part of our community for a number of reasons,” said GRMC board chair, Bill Menner. “Clearly, we’re the health care hub for the entire region. But we’re also an economic engine – with a strong workforce that has a huge impact on the local economy. This study underscores the scope of the GRMC footprint from an economic standpoint.”

The IHA study examined the jobs, income, retail sales and sales tax produced by hospitals and the rest of the state’s health care sector. The study was compiled from hospital-submitted data on the American Hospital Association’s Annual Survey of Hospitals and with software that other industries have used to determine their economic impact.

The study found that Iowa hospitals directly employ over 78,000 direct jobs with 144,176 total jobs either directly or indirectly tied to hospitals. As an income source, hospitals provide $5 billion in salaries and benefits and generate another $3 billion through other jobs that depend on hospitals.

In all, the health care sector, which includes offices of physicians, dentists and other health practitioners, nursing home and residential care, other medical and health services and pharmacies, contributes $19 billion to Iowa’s economy while directly and indirectly providing 347,388 jobs.