Lee Health will collaborate with Encompass Health Corporation on developing more health care facilities in Southwest Florida.

The two health care companies will jointly own and operate two new inpatient rehabilitation hospitals.

The first will be a 40-bed, freestanding rehab hospital that’s under construction at 1730 NE Pine Island Road. It’s scheduled to open in May.

The second, expected to open in 2024, will be a 60-bed, freestanding rehab hospital. That one will be located in Fort Myers at Lee Health’s Gulf Coast Medical Center campus.

When the Fort Myers hospital opens, the 60 rehab beds inside Lee Memorial Hospital will relocate to the new one.

“The landscape of health care is constantly evolving, and our community is one of the fastest-growing regions in the country,” said Dr. Larry Antonucci, president and CEO of Lee Health. “We are excited to invest in the inpatient rehabilitation hospitals that Encompass Health is bringing to our community because they will offer post-acute services to our patients, providing services to best meet the needs of those we serve.”

Lee Health first opened in Fort Myers in 1916.

Encompass Health, based in Birmingham, Alabama, has 146 hospitals, 251 home health locations and 96 hospice locations in 42 states and Puerto Rico.

“We are excited that Lee Health has decided to invest in this venture,” said Mark Tarr, president and CEO of Encompass Health. “Through these inpatient rehabilitation hospitals, we will work to provide patients with coordinated and connected care that meets them where they are in their health care journeys and makes a positive difference in their lives.”