Medical patient migration is causing less economic drain in Northwest Arkansas

Medical patient migration is causing less economic drain in Northwest Arkansas.

According to the 2024 Northwest Arkansas Council Health Care Report, reported by talkbusiness.net, the shortage of specialty care in the region costs approximately $629 million annually in lost revenue.

This figure represents a notable improvement from 2018, when the regional cost of patients seeking care elsewhere reached $950 million. The shift is driven by massive infrastructure investments and the expansion of specialized services from major regional providers.

Springdale-based Highlands Oncology Group (HOG) is marking its 30th year in Northwest Arkansas in 2026. Since its founding in 1996 with just four doctors, the physician-owned group has grown to include more than 32 physicians and a staff of over 850 employees.

The group is currently expanding its physical footprint with a seventh facility. A second location in Rogers, which will provide additional treatment space and hospital beds, is scheduled to open in late 2028. Through 2024, HOG invested more than $40 million in infrastructure, adding 150,000 square feet of space to its cancer centers.

Clinical capabilities have also scaled alongside the physical buildings. The group has increased its clinical trials from approximately 70 to 150 over the last seven years.

Dr. Eric Schaefer, a partner at HOG who joined the practice 17 years ago, noted that the growing local population has created a massive surge in medical needs. He highlighted the group’s multidisciplinary approach, specifically how their weekly clinics allow specialists to evaluate cases in real time.

“We have conference meetings for almost every disease,” Schaefer said. “We started with the chest clinic focusing on lung cancer and thoracic care, but we also have a GI conference that does colorectal cancer.”

This collaborative model has direct implications for patient timelines. By bringing specialists together simultaneously, HOG has reduced average treatment analysis times from eight weeks to less than two weeks.

The practice is also leaning into precision medicine through radioligand therapy (RLT). This method uses an antibody to attach a radioactive isotope directly to cancer cells, acting as a form of targeted infusion. While the program initially focused on carcinoid tumors in 2021, it has since expanded to include late-stage prostate cancer and palliative care for bone-attacking cancers.

Pediatric care in the region is undergoing a similar transformation. Arkansas Children’s opened an $82.7 million expansion at its Springdale hospital on Oct. 7, 2026, adding new operating rooms, treatment spaces, and beds.

Despite this recent increase in capacity, the demand for pediatric services remains high. Arkansas Children’s CEO Marcy Doderer stated that the Springdale hospital had only five open beds remaining following the expansion, which added 65% more capacity. Case volumes at the facility have grown by more than 117% over the last five years.

Metric	Value/Detail
Expansion Cost	$82.7 million
Capacity Increase	65%
Current Northwest Staffing	~650 employees

To stay ahead of the growth, the organization has already secured an additional $45 million to increase the Northwest capacity to 64 beds. Doderer noted that this expansion is intended to provide a three-year buffer before the facility reaches capacity again.

The hospital has also increased its specialized staffing, recently adding a pediatric pulmonologist and an ear, nose, and throat specialist. Doderer emphasized that the long-term strategy involves using research from the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences to provide gene therapy and more precise interventions for children with rare medical issues.