A community contest to name the new hospital resulted in the name "Evergreen." 76-bed Evergreen General Hospital opened its doors on Mar. 9, 1972.
The original boundaries of King County Public Hospital District No. 2's tax district included Bothell, Kenmore, Kirkland, Redmond, Woodinville, part of Sammamish and parts of unincorporated northeast King County.
The district's boundaries remained unchanged until 2000, when the city of Duvall voted to annex itself to the EvergreenHealth district.
Thanks to the foresight of the district's elected commissioners and civic leaders, along with hospital leadership, physicians and staff, King County Public Hospital District No. 2 (today known as EvergreenHealth), the tiny hospital that opened in 1972, is now a multi-hospital system with a service area of nearly 1 million people.
EvergreenHealth's growth took a major step in 2012 when it began what is now a strategic alliance with the hospital that is currently EvergreenHealth Monroe. The Monroe hospital, which is a part of the Snohomish County Public Hospital District No. 1, has evolved for more than a century to continue serving the needs of the residents in the area and beyond. In January 2016, Fairfax Behavioral Health opened its psychiatric hospital within EvergreenHealth Monroe, offering comprehensive psychiatric and behavioral health services to the Snohomish County area.
1960s Milestones
1967 | Voters approve creation of King County Public Hospital District No. 2
1967 | 35 acres of land purchased for what is now the Kirkland campus
1968 | Contest picks the name Evergreen Hospital
1970s Milestones
1970 | Groundbreaking for Evergreen Hospital
1972 | (Mar. 9) Evergreen General Hospital opens with 76 patient beds
1980s Milestones
1982 | Hospital's 3rd floor completed
1983 | Urgent Care opens in Woodinville
1984 | Hospital's 4th floor completed
1986 | North wing opens with new ED, critical care and auditorium
1986 | Hospital's name changed to Evergreen Hospital Medical Center
1986 | Home care services begin
1990s Milestones
1991 | Evergreen Hospice Care Center opens
1991 | EvergreenHealth Foundation formed
1992 | East wing (Blue zone) opens, doubling the size of the hospital
1994 | Evergreen Professional Center (Coral zone) opens
1995 | Hospital's name is changed to Evergreen Community Health Care
1996 | EvergreenHealth named the nation's first "Baby-Friendly Hospital" by UNICEF
1996 | Family Maternity Center named one of the nation's "10 Best Places to Have a Baby" by Self magazine
1996 | 16 primary care physicians join EvergreenHealth, creating the EvergreenHealth Medical Group
2000s Milestones
2000 | EvergreenHealth Primary Care, Sammamish opens
2000 | Booth Gardner Parkinson's Care Center opens
2001 | EvergreenHealth Primary Care, Duvall opens
2002 | EvergreenHealth opens the Eastside's first Level III intensive care nursery
2002 | Evergreen Surgery & Physicians Pavilion (Tan zone) opens adjacent to the hospital
2003 | 4th and 5th floors open in the Blue zone
2005 | EvergreenHealth Plaza medical office building opens
2007 | New Emergency Department and Patient Tower (Silver zone) open
2008 | Mobile coach brings 3D mammography to community locations
2009 | DeYoung Pavilion opens adjacent to the hospital
2009 | Named a Distinguished Hospital for Clinical Excellence by Healthgrades
2010s Milestones
2010 | Named a Distinguished Hospital for Clinical Excellence by Healthgrades
2011 | New primary and urgent care centers open in Redmond and Woodinville
2011 | Emergency Department opens in Redmond
2011 | Named a Distinguished Hospital for Clinical Excellence by Healthgrades
2012 | Evergreen Healthcare is renamed EvergreenHealth
2012 | Halvorson Cancer Center opens at EvergreenHealth
2012 | Named a Distinguished Hospital for Clinical Excellence by Healthgrades
2013 | EvergreenHealth Partners (EHP), the first clinically integrated network (CIN) in the region, is launched
2014 | Valley General Hospital joins EvergreenHealth; later renamed EvergreenHealth Monroe
2014 | EvergreenHealth joins the Puget Sound High Value Network
2014 | Named one of America's 250 Best Hospitals by Healthgrades
2015 | Sky Valley Family Medicine joins EvergreenHealth, becomes EvergreenHealth Primary Care, Sultan
2015 | Named one of America's 250 Best Hospitals by Healthgrades
2016 | Community votes to expand the EvergreenHealth Board of Commissioners to seven members
2016 | Named one of America's 250 Best Hospitals by Healthgrades
2016 | Named a Best Regional Hospital by US News & World Report
2017 | Lakeshore Clinic joins EvergreenHealth, becomes EvergreenHealth Primary Care, Lakeshore
2017 | EvergreenHealth and Overlake Medical Center partner to form the Eastside Health Alliance
2017 | 4th and 5th floors open in the Silver tower
2017 | Named one of America's 100 Best Hospitals by Healthgrades
2017 | EvergreenHealth Urgent Care opens in Mill Creek, Sammamish and Kenmore
2018 | Named a Distinguished Hospital for Clinical Excellence by Healthgrades
2018 | Named one of America's 100 Best Hospitals by Healthgrades
2018 | Recognized with Healthgrades' Outstanding Patient Experience Award
2018 | EvergreenHealth Primary Care, Mill Creek opens
2019 | Received a Spring 'A' grade for patient safety from The Leapfrog Group
2019 | Named one of America's 100 Best Hospitals by Healthgrades
2019 | Ranked the #3 Best Hospital in the Seattle metro area and in Washington State by US News & World Report
2019 | Received a Fall 'A' grade for patient safety from The Leapfrog Group
2020s Milestones
2020 | Named one of America's 100 Best Hospitals by Healthgrades
2020 | Received a Spring 'A' grade for patient safety from The Leapfrog Group
2020 | Named a Best Regional Hospital by US News & World Report
2020 | EvergreenHealth Urgent Care, Totem Lake opens
2020 | Named one of America's 100 Best Hospitals for Specialty Care (stroke, pulmonary, gastrointestinal, general surgery) by Healthgrades
2020 | Received a Fall 'A' grade for patient safety from The Leapfrog Group
2021 | Named one of America's 50 Best Hospitals by Healthgrades
2021 | Received a Spring 'A' grade for patient safety from The Leapfrog Group
2021 | New 20-bed Intensive Care Unit opens
2021 | Named a Best Regional Hospital by US News & World Report
2021 | Named one of America's 100 Best Hospitals for Specialty Care (stroke, pulmonary, gastrointestinal, gastrointestinal surgery, spine surgery) by Healthgrades
2021 | Received a Fall 'A' grade for patient safety from the Leapfrog Group.
2022 | Named one of America's 50 Best Hospitals by Healthgrades
2023 | Named one of America's 50 Best Hospitals by Healthgrades
2023 | Ranked No. 1 in the Puget Sound region and among the top two hospitals in Washington state for Critical Care in 2023 by Healthgrades
2023 | Ranked No. 1 in Washington for Stroke Care, Gastrointestinal Services and Pulmonary Services by Healthgrades
2023 | Recognized by Healthgrades as the only Puget Sound-area hospital to earn the 2023 Patient Safety Excellence Award™, placing the health system in the top 10% of short-term acute care hospitals evaluated
2023 | Earned 'A' Hospital Safety Grade from Leapfrog Group
2023 | Physicians and Evergreen Emergency Services Group honored with the 2023 King County Medical Society (KCMS) Excellence in Medicine Awards
2023 | Ettore Palazzo, MD, FACP, was appointed CEO of EvergreenHealth on Dec. 10, 2023. Dr. Palazzo assumed the role following the retirement of CEO Jeff Tomlin, MD.
2024 | Named among the country's 100 Great Community Hospitals for 2024 by Becker's Hospital Review
2024 | Named one of just 17 hospitals nationwide as a Recognized Leader in Caring for People Living with Diabetes, a first-of-its-kind designation from the Leapfrog Group in collaboration with the American Diabetes Association (ADA)
2024 | Earned 'A' Hospital Safety Grade from Leapfrog Group
2024 | Recognized as a Center for Excellence for Orthopedic Surgery and certified for Advanced Spine Surgery by Det Norske Veritas (DNV), a hospital accreditation organization through the Centers of Medicare and Medicaid (CMS). EvergreenHealth is the only hospital in the Pacific Northwest region to earn this distinction.
2024 | Received a five-star overall rating from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), putting EvergreenHealth Medical Center in the top 13% of over 4,500 hospitals nationwide.
2024 | Named among America's Best Maternity Hospitals by Newsweek for 2024
2024 | Earned accolades for clinical excellence from Healthgrades, including four Specialty Excellence Awards, placing the hospital among the nation's top 10% for Gastrointestinal Care, Gastrointestinal Surgery, Stroke Care and Pulmonary Care
2024 | Rated five stars for nine service areas, including Heart Failure, Spinal Fusion, Cranial Neurosurgery, Treatment of Stroke, Pneumonia, GI Bleed, Bowel Obstruction, Upper Gastrointestinal Surgeries and Sepsis
