The parent of Hartford’s St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center will announce Wednesday that it has reached a deal to join a national Catholic hospital chain.
St. Francis Care has signed a definitive agreement to merge with Michigan’s Trinity Health. The merger comes a little over a year after St. Francis’ deal to be purchased by Missouri-based Ascension Health Care fell through.
Unlike the Ascension deal, however, St. Francis will remain a not-for-profit hospital when it joins Trinity, which is trying to gain a stronger foothold in New England.
The $13.6 billion hospital chain owns 86 hospitals in 21 states, including the Sisters of Providence Health System in Springfield, Mass.
Trinity said it is trying to create a regional health system in New England that will be anchored by St. Francis and Sisters of Providence.
Christopher Dadlez, St. Francis Care’s president and CEO, will lead the new regional ministry.
Daniel P. Moen will continue to serve as president and CEO of Sisters of Providence and play a significant role in the formation of the new regional system.
The agreement has been approved by the Archdiocese of Hartford, which sponsors St. Francis Care, and is subject to further approvals required by Canon Law, and regulatory approvals from state and federal agencies. The deal is expected to be completed by late 2015, the hospitals said.
Once the partnership is complete, Trinity Health has agreed to invest at least $275 million over the next five years in capital projects throughout the region.
Dadlez told Hartford Business Journal Wednesday morning that the two sides began negotiation talks about eight months ago and that their shared mission and strategy made the deal possible. Trinity’s strong credit rating will also help St. Francis access capital to strengthen its ability to better manage patient populations, Dadlez said. That will include further investment in ambulatory care centers, information technology and physician acquisitions, he said.
“This will allow us to invest in the development of a new era of health care,” Dadlez said.
The deal is the latest example of a major consolidation trend playing out across Connecticut’s and the nation’s healthcare industry as hospitals and other providers face pressure the rein in costs and improve patient care.
