Health & Wellness
Intermountain Health’s Primary Promise announces $642 million in gifts to build the nation’s model health system for children
Donna Barnes | Lehi Free Press
“This is a happy place,” stated Gail Miller, legendary benefactor of Primary Children’s Hospitals, in an address at the Lehi Campus on October 22, 2025. “I remember thinking about the magic that happens at these hospitals,” she continued, “and I envisioned a hospital where children could receive the best care in the world.”
With the news that the initiative “Primary Promise” had been gifted $642 million in the last five years, Miller’s dream has become a reality. The original goal of $500 million was surpassed in what Spencer Zwick, co-founder and managing partner of Solamere Capital, stated, “the most successful donation initiative in the world. The generosity of this community is unbelievable.”
The goals for Primary Promise were addressed by providing robust fetal care including fetal surgery; expanding autism services, lifelong child health and safety initiatives, personalized medicine and telehealth access to pediatric care; redesigning newborn intensive are and cancer spaces in Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital, Salt Lake Campus; and by opening a second hospital campus, named the Larry H. & Gail Miller Family Campus, in Lehi, Utah.
Zwick added the statistics to support the goals, “We have had over 900 children home visits, 92,000 books given, we have a state-of-the-art NICU, the Angel Eyes program has provided camera visits for 78,000 families, 200 children have rung the bell for cancer treatment, and two academic chairs have been created in cancer research.
Steve Lund, co-founder and executive board chair of NuSkin Enterprises, added, “Primary Promise is about being part of something greater, to everyone who gave in memory of a loved one—as our family has—our hearts are with you, today and always. Your gifts have made a profound difference, honoring those we love. Who could ask for a brighter legacy?” He also noted, “We now address comprehensive care to every family, especially teens who move into adulthood. We have had 450,000 telehealth visits, and 96% of school-age patients have returned to school. We have also served 500 children with autism, and we have 80% more behavioral health capacity.
The final guests in the program were Abigail Rose and her mother, Alisha. Abigail is a living legacy of Primary Promise. In 2021, she became the first child ever to receive an in-utero fetal surgery in the state of Utah. In an ultrasound, Alisha was told her daughter had spina bifida, a condition that leaves an area of the spine open and nerves exposed. Doctors performed surgery on the fetus to address the anomaly. At the time, Alisha was about 25 weeks pregnant. That gave time so the fetal spine could heal as part of its natural development. A month after the surgery, Abigail was born. Today, she is a happy, energetic child who waved to all those there and spoke confidently about her surgery.
It was noted that Intermountain Health’s work will continue in Montana and Nevada. “With you, our donor family, we’ve created an enhanced environment to provide the best pediatric care in the world,” concluded Miller. “Our legacy is that we did not hesitate, and this work will continue tp march forward. We started with Pennies by the Inch, but we operate at a much grander scale today, remembering the children are first, always, and forever.”
