SAN FRANCISCO, CA — UC San Francisco has received approval for its plans to build a hospital at UCSF Helen Diller Medical Center at Parnassus Heights to meet the region’s growing demand for specialty care and California’s rigorous hospital seismic requirements.

The University of California Board of Regents voted to approve the full budget, scope, and design for the new hospital, a centerpiece of UCSF’s 30-year vision to transform its oldest campus at Parnassus Heights to continue driving innovations in research, education, and health care. Regents also approved the California Environmental Quality Act findings and certified the Environmental Impact Report. The $4.3-billion budget for the new hospital and associated improvements will be funded from external financing, philanthropy, and hospital reserves.

“When it opens in 2030, the new hospital will incorporate the latest innovations in technology, including advanced diagnostics and robotics, to drive new therapies and treatments that are backed by UCSF’s scientific research,” said UCSF Chancellor Sam Hawgood. “The new hospital has been designed with the patient at the center, with rooms designed for privacy and safety and communal spaces that connect to nature and promote health and wellness.”

Acclaimed architects and designers Herzog & de Meuron, in partnership with architect of record, HDR, have designed the new 15-story hospital to address the social, psychological, spiritual, and behavioral components of health for a holistic healing experience. The human-centered design will create a healing habitat that integrates with the surrounding nature, promoting physical and emotional health for patients, visitors, and employees alike.

The hospital design complements the broader plans to transform the Parnassus Heights campus that will welcome the community, expand publicly accessible open space, and offer trails that will connect the campus from Golden Gate Park to the peak of Mount Sutro.

UCSF has received about $603 million from donors in support of the hospital, including $500 million from the Helen Diller Foundation for the planning, design, and construction.

The design and development of the new hospital and the overall Parnassus Heights campus revitalization plan have been informed by extensive community feedback and outreach efforts conducted over the past several years. The plan is supported by a diverse cross-section of the community, including many campus neighbors, patients, elected leaders, health care associations, trade unions, business, and workforce-development organizations.

UCSF expects to begin construction of the new hospital in 2023 with a grand opening in 2030 in time to meet the state seismic safety deadline for hospitals.