Episode 329- Detroit’s $2.2B Hospital Bet. with Denise Brooks-Williams

A 111-year-old Detroit institution is making one of the biggest bets in Michigan health care, and the details are more ambitious than a new building. From the Mackinac Policy Conference, we talk with Denise Brooks Williams, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Henry Ford Health System, about the “Future of Health” initiative and what it takes to modernize a flagship campus while keeping community needs at the center.

We get into Destination Grand, a roughly 1.2 million square foot, $2.2 billion hospital project on West Grand Boulevard. Denise explains how all private rooms, a redesigned emergency department with a stronger behavioral health focus, updated operating rooms, and new technology infrastructure are meant to change the experience of care, not just the skyline. Just as important, we discuss how Henry Ford worked through Detroit’s community benefit ordinance process to hear directly from residents about affordability, access, transportation, and the kinds of services that make a medical district usable in everyday life.

The conversation also widens to statewide access. With Henry Ford Health’s joint venture with Ascension and partnerships across Michigan, we talk about how specialty expertise can show up closer to home in communities like Jackson, Genesee County, and beyond, while still creating a clear path to advanced care when needed.

Finally, we tackle the policy headwinds shaping the future: the 340B drug pricing program, Medicaid reimbursement, and why “common ground” matters if we want sustainable healthcare affordability and access for Michigan patients. If you care about Detroit hospital development, Michigan health policy, and what real community-centered healthcare delivery looks like, hit subscribe, share this with a friend, and leave a review so more people can find the show.

Transcript

This episode of the Common Bridge is part of a special 21-part series of interviews recorded with healthcare leaders from across Michigan during the 2026 Mackinac Policy Conference, in partnership with the Michigan Health and Hospital Association. In these short conversations with his guests, Rich explores regulation, cost pressures, workforce challenges, and the future of healthcare in Michigan and around the country.*

Richard Helppie

We're at the Mackinac Policy Conference on behalf of the Michigan Health and Hospital Association and the Common Bridge Substack and Podcast. I'm your host, Rich Helppie, and we have with us today the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of the Henry Ford Health System, the illustrious Denise Brooks-Williams. Good to see you. How have you been?

Denise Brooks-Williams

I've been well.

Richard Helppie

I hope it was okay to introduce you as illustrious.

Denise Brooks-Williams

That was incredibly kind.

Richard Helppie

I know you, so I know that's true — anybody who looks you up will find out that's very true. Well, let's talk a little bit about Henry Ford Health. Henry Ford has been a leader for over 100 years, and now it looks like you're ready to launch further. It's so exciting. Tell us what's going on.

Denise Brooks-Williams

It's incredibly exciting. As you said, Henry Ford Hospital specifically has been in the city of Detroit, on West Grand Boulevard, for 111 years. Honestly, it's probably been 20 years in the making — this idea of how we could advance that campus and do it in a way that reforms care, both in how it's delivered and the setting it's delivered in. Fortunately, over the last three years or so, we've been able to move the project forward. We call it the Future of Health, and it's really our opportunity to partner broadly with the Detroit Pistons, Michigan State University, and the Gilbert Family Foundation. Within that, there are several projects. One is what we call Destination Grand, a new hospital that's being built — a little over 1.2 million square feet, a 2.2-billion-dollar investment. It will allow us to have all private rooms across the campus, a new emergency department with a particular focus on behavioral health, state-of-the-art technology and infrastructure, and all new operating rooms. But I think the most important part isn't just the physical structure — it's what it's going to do to transform care in the community. We worked really closely with the community to actually conceive what needed to be there and how the campus needed to evolve over time. The partnering piece is really about housing. The Pistons are coming in as a housing partner. A new rehabilitative hospital, the Shirley Ryan Ability Lab, will be there — that's what the Gilbert Family Foundation is funding — along with a new research building, which is the Michigan State partnership.

Richard Helppie

It sounds like there are a lot of joint ventures going on.

Denise Brooks-Williams

A lot of joint ventures. Yes, yes.

Richard Helppie

Lots of negotiation.

Denise Brooks-Williams

Yeah, lots of negotiation and partners.

Richard Helppie

Has there been an announcement? If there has, I'm not aware of it. But what will happen to the old property?

Denise Brooks-Williams

The old property will stay. We've kind of softly announced that as part of the project, but it will remain in place. We have a lot of ambulatory activity happening on that campus today, and that will conceivably stay. We'll also look at how we might utilize the space from an inpatient perspective, because we do have some capacity for private rooms and other services on that side. So at this point, it will remain part of the overall footprint of the campus.

Richard Helppie

So if I were a resident of the city of Detroit and asked, "How does this impact and benefit me?" — what would you tell me?

Denise Brooks-Williams

The first thing I'd say is that if you're a resident of Detroit, you're lucky, because we have a process called the community benefit ordinance. We spent nine weeks with community members who were elected based on the project's impact census, and what they told us they wanted was to make sure healthcare would be affordable and accessible, and that they'd be able to see health status actually improve in the community. They also wanted to make sure we had transportation, and we talked about retail and other services that might come in. The beautiful thing about this project is that we listened to that community voice — they're going to get all of that and more.

Richard Helppie

Wonderful. I know Mayor Duggan, when there were tax incentives for employers, said, "I'm only going to offer those if you employ citizens of Detroit, residents of Detroit." Is any of that baked into this development?

Denise Brooks-Williams

It was definitely discussed, absolutely, and part of that city ordinance certainly suggests there's attention paid to who's part of the project. As we know, our laws have evolved federally, so we're utilizing the federal law as it relates to who participates. But there are a lot of Detroiters who are able to be engaged in that work, and our construction company is probably handling the majority of that in terms of the trades that are part of it. There's real intentionality around ensuring that the city of Detroit benefits from the project. Permanent jobs, obviously, because they'll be located in Detroit, have the ability to really impact the economy in a positive way. So if you come to work with us, you're going to contribute to the city of Detroit's tax base.

Richard Helppie

I ask that question because often on my podcast, I find myself being the homer for Detroit — there's so much positive energy going on, and this is going to be a real big catalyst here.

Denise Brooks-Williams

Absolutely. As you said, Mayor Duggan was a huge proponent and supporter of the project. We also had the benefit of working with our new mayor, Mary Sheffield, who at the time was the city council president, and I think, to your point, she sees it as a huge catalyst. We've already seen other developments start in that community — you have the Motown Museum, and I know Robin Terry is here at the conference, going through their whole rebirth and renovation. We're also able to partner closely with the Detroit Public Community School District because we have schools within the footprint. And other businesses will benefit as well. So it's truly showing itself as a catalyst for the whole community.

Richard Helppie

I'm glad you mentioned the Motown Museum. Everybody listening to or watching this show should go there — you get to sing at the end, in the studio where the Temptations recorded. Don't miss it.

Denise Brooks-Williams

Absolutely. All right.

Richard Helppie

Especially if you can hit the high notes. The Henry Ford Health System, which of course has been an icon in Detroit for a long time — 111 years.

Denise Brooks-Williams

Yes.

Richard Helppie

Now you're expanding the footprint across the state. What's that journey been like?

Denise Brooks-Williams

It's been an amazing journey. If you look at our name, Destination Grand, the destination part is about having destination care, which for us is in Detroit. But the beautiful thing is that now, with our joint venture with Ascension Health, we've brought in new access points that, as you said, really do span across the state at this point. So what I believe it means is our ability to partner in communities — because care is still local for us — while making all the expertise of the Henry Ford Health System available in those communities.

Richard Helppie

And how far outstate does that go? I know you're in Jackson.

Denise Brooks-Williams

We're in Jackson. We're in Genesee County because we have the Genesis Health System as part of it. We also, through collaboration — not related to the Ascension joint venture, but other partnerships — have Covenant Health in Saginaw. And of course, we've always had care come to us from the U.P. and other areas, with patients coming to Henry Ford Hospital. So we'd say we cover the entire state.

Richard Helppie

Indeed. So someone in Saginaw would have access to the deep specialists Henry Ford is known for.

Denise Brooks-Williams

Absolutely, because we have specialty clinics being placed in that community, which allows them to get primary specialty care locally, close to home. And if, for whatever reason, they needed more advanced care, we would try to provide it there. If we couldn't, they would absolutely be able to come to another Henry Ford site.

Richard Helppie

What are some of the headwinds — particularly since we're at this conference — anything that might be addressed at a public policy level?

Denise Brooks-Williams

Definitely — there's a lot of public policy being discussed. One of those is 340B, and how we ensure access to pharmaceuticals for our vulnerable communities. There's a lot of discussion at the state level about maintaining and retaining some form of 340B. We don't believe there's much that needs to be modified with it currently, but if it is modified, it's still essential to keep pharmaceuticals affordable for the community. There's also a lot of discussion around Medicaid and what it may look like. We're one of the lowest-reimbursed states, as we know, so there's very little room for any further reduction. So there's a lot of discussion about how we, at a minimum, maintain it — and if we do need to reform it, reform it in a way that doesn't leave anyone vulnerable, especially those who are already economically vulnerable today.

Richard Helppie

I'm really encouraged to hear that, because pharmaceuticals and patient care are the two pillars driving cost. I wish we had more time to talk about denials and things like that. Are there any final thoughts you'd like to leave with the audience tuning in?

Denise Brooks-Williams

I'd definitely say this conference, as you know, is about finding common ground. So I think, as we think about healthcare affordability and access, and about ensuring we have rich resources in the state of Michigan, we have to find that common ground from a public policy perspective.

Richard Helppie

Indeed — much to be gained by working together, and much to be lost by not doing that. We've been talking with Denise Brooks-Williams, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of the Henry Ford Health System. Very exciting things are happening with Henry Ford in the city of Detroit and across the state. On behalf of the Michigan Health and Hospital Association and the Common Bridge Substack and podcast, this is your host, Rich Helppie, signing off.