Lexington Medical Center is taking a bold step into next door Richland County.

The hospital next year will open a 225,000-square-foot medical clinic in Northeast Columbia on Clemson Road.

It will have outpatient surgery, urgent care, imaging, occupational and physical therapy, a walking trail and classrooms in 5 floors.

LMC President Tod Augsburger said they have 9 private practices in the area which want after hours outpatient care available to patients.

A wider network where patients can go with less serious needs eases demand on the LMC emergency room in West Columbia.

Emergency departments can be pricey for the uninsured or under-insured and expensive for hospitals.

Health care economics has shifted from big hospitals with many beds and specialists to urgent care providers closer to patients like the 6 in Lexington County from Chapin to Swansea.

Technology now provides procedures that used to take days now take hours and patients go home and fewer overnight hospital stays.