About us

About Lovell Federal Health Care Center 

The Lovell Federal Healthcare System provides you with outstanding health care, trains America’s future health care providers, and conducts important medical research.

The Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center (FHCC) is a first-of-its-kind partnership between the U. S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense (DoD), integrating all medical care into a federal health care facility with a single combined VA and Navy mission.

Lovell FHCC is located in North Chicago, Illinois, and was established on Oct. 1, 2010 when the former North Chicago VA Medical Center (VAMC) and the former Naval Health Clinic Great Lakes (NHCGL) merged their resources and services. A combined mission of the health care center means active duty military, their family members, military retirees and veterans are all cared for at the facility. The center cares for nearly 75,000 patients per year, including an estimated 40,000 Navy recruits who prepare for military service at Recruit Training Command at Naval Station Great Lakes.

In 2019, the resources of Lovell FHCC that provide medical care and support for Department of Defense beneficiaries were aligned under the management oversight of the Defense Health Agency. While DHA is responsible for health care delivery and business operations, Navy Medicine retains principle responsibility for operational readiness of the Navy and Marine Corps. To complement the transition, Navy Medicine established the co-located Navy Medicine Readiness and Training Command Great Lakes, to which all military personnel of Lovell FHCC are assigned.

Our mission is accomplished at three primary locations:

West Campus

We provide a full spectrum of health care for our patients, including full medical and surgical care, a large array of medical sub-specialties (cardiology, pulmonary, neurology, etc,), a variety of mental health services (acute and long-term care, post-traumatic stress disorder, homeless domiciliary care, alcohol/drug rehab, etc.), Community Living Center, as well as many other programs, at our campus in North Chicago, Illinois.

East Campus

At our four branch medical clinics on Naval Station Great Lakes, we serve U.S. Navy military members and recruits:

USS Osborne (Bldg. 1017)
USS Tranquillity (Bldg. 1007)
USS Red Rover (Bldg. 1523)
Fisher Clinic (Bldg. 237)

Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOC)

Evanston, Illinois

Kenosha, Wisconsin

McHenry, Illinois

Health care and services

We provide you with health care services at 4 locations serving northeastern Illinois and southeastern Wisconsin. Our main hospital is at the Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center at the Great Lakes Naval Station in North Chicago. We also have 3 community-based outpatient clinics in Evanston and McHenry, Illinois, and Kenosha, Wisconsin. To learn more about the services each location offers, visit the Lovell Federal health care health services page. 

The Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center is a first-of-its-kind partnership between the VA and the Department of Defense, integrating all medical care into a federal health care facility with a single combined VA and Navy mission.

Lovell Federal health care is one of the leading health care systems serving Veterans in the VA Great Lakes Network. We’re an innovative care center within the Veterans Integrated Service Network 12 (VISN 12). VISN 12 includes medical centers and clinics in Wisconsin, Illinois, northwestern Indiana, and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. 

Learn more about VISN 12

Research and development

At Lovell Federal health care, we conduct research to discover knowledge, develop VA scientists and health care leaders, and create innovations that advance health care for Veterans and the nation. We offer Veterans the opportunity to participate in and benefit from our work. Our goal is to use research to promote better health and health care for all.

Our research program has 75 investigators working on about 45 ongoing research projects.  Major research areas include:

• Molecular biology
• Cardiology
• Oncology
• Alcoholism
• Immunology
• Diabetes
• Substance abuse
• Spinal cord injuries
• Speech pathology
• Aging
• Pulmonary diseases
• Health care outcomes
• Infectious diseases
• Vision
• Psychiatric illnesses
• Rehabilitation medicine
• Behavioral sciences

Teaching and learning

Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center is a teaching hospital that provides a full range of health services for Veterans, with state-of-the-art technology as well as education and research. 

Our primary academic affiliation is with Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine, which is next to our hospital at the Great Lakes Naval Station in North Chicago.

We offer internships and residencies in all major medical specialties and subspecialties. We also provide associated training in health care fields like health services administration, audiology and speech pathology, biomedical engineering, dental assisting, medical technology, pharmacy, nursing, physical therapy, podiatry, psychology, and social work. We train more than 400 residents, interns, and students each year.

We’re proud of our partnerships with top institutions and organizations that support the educational mission of the VA.

Fast facts

• Our hospital is named in honor of retired American astronaut James A. Lovell. Lovell orbited the moon twice, once as command module pilot of Apollo 8 in 1968, and again as commander of the 1970 Apollo 13 lunar mission. He also served as an aviator in the Navy and graduated from the Naval Academy in 1952.
• Our hospital has 199 operational beds, 195 nursing home care beds, and 149 residential treatment beds for mental health care, substance abuse care, and homelessness.
• Our community-based outpatient clinic in Great Lakes is named in honor of philanthropists Zachary and Elizabeth Fisher. Zachary Fisher, who was unable to serve in World War II because of a leg injury, supported the military with construction leadership and financial contributions. The Fishers founded the Fisher House Foundation in 1990, which provides comfort housing for families of hospitalized Veterans and military personnel.
• Our USS Osborne dental clinic is named in honor of Lt. j.g. Weeden E. Osborne, a Navy dentist who was killed in World War I. Osborne received the Medal of Honor posthumously, the highest American military decoration.
• USS Red Rover is named in honor of the Navy steamer commissioned during the Civil War from 1962 to 1965. She was a hospital ship for the Mississippi Squadron, transporting medical supplies, nurses, and patients along the western rivers of the US. 

Accreditations and achievements

Our facilities and programs have received accreditation from the:

• Joint Commission - 2024 Accreditation 
• Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF)
• College of American Pathologists (CAP)