Hospital set to open in Lillington

The $56 million Central Harnett Hospital will officially open on Jan. 18. The hospital will include an emergency department, a special care unit and three operating rooms, and specialties offered include orthopedics, gynecology and general surgery.

Many Harnett County residents have traveled to Raleigh or Fayetteville for hospital care in the past, and officials said the new hospital will allow them to get care closer to home.

"The opening of a hospital not only provides a new level of health care for Harnett County, but it also gives a boost to the economy and gives young people a chance to build their lives here," said Bill Pully, president of the North Carolina Hospital Association.

Central Harnett Hospital can expand to as many as 150 beds in the future.