Mission Health and HCA Healthcare (HCA) have entered into a definitive agreement for HCA to acquire Mission Health. The agreement will be sent to the North Carolina Attorney General for applicable regulatory review, according to a news release.
“From the very beginning, Mission Health’s Board worked diligently and continually to ensure that the very best path was selected for the people of western North Carolina and to make certain that our community has access to high quality, effective and compassionate care for generations to come,” says Mission Health Board Chair John R. Ball, MD, JD, in a media release from Mission Health.
“Mission Health has an impressive, more than 130-year tradition of caring for communities throughout western North Carolina and we are delighted to have finalized our agreements so that we can help continue their legacy,” states Milton Johnson, HCA Healthcare’s chairman and CEO, per the release. “As a healthcare provider founded by physicians 50 years ago ourselves, we share Mission Health’s focus on excellence and we look forward to investing in western North Carolina to improve the health of the region.”
Mission Health will continue to be managed locally while HCA Healthcare brings its significant capabilities in operations, capital access, clinical trials, research, predictive modeling, analytics and more to augment Mission Health’s existing capabilities.
HCA Healthcare has agreed to pay approximately $1.5 billion for the assets of the Mission Health system. Under the terms of the definitive agreement, nearly all Mission Health facilities and clinics will become part of HCA Healthcare while continuing to operate under the Mission brand.
HCA has also committed to maintaining key clinical services for at least 5 years and keeping open all rehabilitation and acute care hospitals for a minimum of 10 years, other than St Joseph’s Hospital, which was already planned for transition.
Likewise, HCA has agreed not to sell any rehabilitation or acute care hospital for a minimum of 10 years. None of these protections exist for Mission Health programs or facilities today.
Further, HCA Healthcare has committed to $430 million over 5 years in capital expenditures, which includes the completion of the Mission Hospital for Advanced Medicine, building a replacement hospital for Angel Medical Center and building a new Behavioral Health hospital.
Additionally, HCA will contribute $25 million, that when combined with a matching $25 million contribution from Mission Health, will create a $50 million innovation fund to invest in businesses providing innovations in health care delivery that benefit the people of western North Carolina, the release explains.
“HCA Healthcare looks forward to providing high quality services to the residents of western North Carolina,” adds Chuck Hall, president of HCA’s National Group.
“HCA Healthcare has a strong track record of enhancing its hospitals’ operations and a proven history of investing in the communities it serves. The fact that we have ensured unprecedented protections for our rural communities in western North Carolina, enabled a $50 million innovation fund and created the Dogwood Health Trust all demonstrate how this transaction will be transformative for our region,” Ronald A. Paulus, MD, president and CEO of Mission Health, shares in the release.
[Source(s): Mission Health, PR Newswire]
