After a brief post-pandemic lull, hospital consolidation is accelerating again, with large health systems expanding across state lines, absorbing independent hospitals and reshaping regional care markets.
From portfolio resets and strategic exits to cross-market mergers and billion-dollar investments, these moves reflect how scale, capital access and geographic reach are becoming critical advantages in today’s healthcare landscape.
Here are 29 large health systems that have announced or plan to close strategic mergers, acquisitions or partnerships this year.
Editor’s note: This is not an exhaustive list.
1. AdventHealth, a 57-hospital system headquartered in Altamonte Springs, Fla., is pursuing a joint venture with Salt Lake City-based Intermountain to combine eight hospitals, dozens of physician practices and a network of emergency and urgent care centers across the greater Denver area. The joint venture would include AdventHealth’s five Denver-area hospitals and Intermountain’s three Colorado hospitals, along with related physician practices and clinics. AdventHealth would lead and manage daily operations under the proposed transaction, which is expected to close in early 2027, pending a definitive agreement and regulatory approvals.
2. Intermountain, a 34-hospital system, plans to acquire Brentwood, Tenn.-based Surgery Partners’ stakes in Idaho Falls Community Hospital and Mountain View Hospital. Intermountain already holds an undisclosed ownership stake in both facilities. The transaction values the hospitals at about $1.15 billion and would provide Surgery Partners with roughly $795 million in total consideration.
3. Kettering (Ohio) Health, a 14-hospital system, plans to acquire Knox Community Hospital, a 99-bed hospital in Mount Vernon, Ohio. The two organizations have entered exclusive negotiations, with a definitive agreement targeted for early fall and closing expected by the end of 2026, pending regulatory approval.
4. Rochester (N.Y.) Regional Health, a nine-hospital system, plans to affiliate with Ogdensburg, N.Y.-based North Star Health Alliance, which filed for bankruptcy in February. North Star’s boards selected Rochester Regional after evaluating potential partners in collaboration with the New York State Department of Health. The systems plan to jointly apply for a multiyear state safety-net transformation grant to support North Star’s long-term recovery. With state support, they will also continue discussions toward a more formal affiliation, subject to regulatory and court approvals.
5. Greenville, S.C.-based Prisma Health plans to acquire Erlanger Health, a seven-hospital system headquartered in Chattanooga, Tenn. Under the proposal, Prisma — a 20-hospital system — would establish its East Tennessee regional headquarters in Chattanooga, which Jim Coleman, president and CEO of Erlanger, would lead as regional CEO. The proposed partnership includes $2 billion in capital investments to expand access to care and accelerate innovation and growth across Chattanooga. The two systems are working toward a definitive agreement.
6. Pittsburgh-based Allegheny Health Network acquired Heritage Valley Beaver and Heritage Valley Sewickley, effective July 1. which became the 15th and 16th hospitals in the health system’s network. As part of the affiliation, Allegheny Health Network — a subsidiary of Highmark Health— became the sole corporate member of Heritage Valley Health System.
7. Edison, N.J.-based Hackensack Meridian Health signed a June 22 letter of intent to explore the acquisition of Flemington, N.J.-based Hunterdon Health. Hunterdon Health includes its flagship hospital, Hunterdon Medical Center, and a network of more than 30 medical practices across central New Jersey. Hackensack Meridian Health comprises 18 hospitals, more than 500 care sites and 40,000 employees.
8. Chapel Hill, N.C.-based UNC Health, a 16-hospital system, plans to take over Onslow Memorial Hospital, a 162-bed facility in Jacksonville, N.C., under a strategic affiliation agreement approved June 15 by the Onslow County Board of Commissioners. Effective July 1, UNC Health will gain a 30% membership interest in the hospital and an expanded operational role. A second phase will increase UNC Health’s membership interest to 49%. A third and final phase, set for 2029, would make UNC Health the sole member of Onslow Memorial.
9. St. Louis-based Ascension on June 4 completed its $3.9 billion acquisition of AmSurg, expanding its ambulatory surgery center footprint to 300 ASCs nationwide. The transaction marks a significant step forward for the faith-based system, which sold or consolidated multiple hospitals over the last three years as it revamped its hospital portfolio, operating model and financial performance. Ascension also plans to acquire Franklin, Tenn.-based Williamson Health for about $700 million.
10. Brentwood, Tenn.-based Lifepoint Health on June 2 acquired eight community hospitals in six states from Louisville, Ky.-based ScionHealth. The hospitals include:
- Bolivar Medical Center in Cleveland, Miss.
- Ennis (Texas) Regional Medical Center
- Livingston (Tenn.) Regional Hospital
- Logan (W.Va.) Regional Medical Center
- Palestine (Texas) Regional Medical Center
- Parkview Regional Hospital in Mexia, Texas
- St. Joseph Regional Medical Center in Lewiston, Idaho
- Watertown (Wis.) Regional Medical Center
11. Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Healthcare on June 1 acquired 17 urgent care clinics from Urgent Care Group in North and South Carolina. In February, the for-profit health system also acquired 13 CommunityMed urgent care centers to serve under CareNow Urgent Care. In another transaction, St. David’s HealthCare also acquired six freestanding emergency departments in Austin, Texas.
12. Little Rock, Ark.-based Baptist Health in June acquired South Arkansas Regional Hospital in El Dorado, expanding its footprint to 13 hospitals. In April, the health system signed a definitive agreement to acquire Magnolia (Ark.) Regional Medical Center. That transaction is expected to close July 12.
13. Memphis, Tenn.-based Baptist Memorial Health Care will assume operations of Merit Health Rankin, a 134-bed hospital in Brandon, Miss., later this year, adding a 26th hospital to the nonprofit system. Merit Health Rankin is currently operated by Brandon HMA, an affiliate of Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems. The deal follows Baptist Memorial’s March acquisition of Paragould, Ark.-based Arkansas Methodist Medical Center. Baptist Memorial currently operates 25 hospitals across Tennessee, Mississippi and Arkansas.
14. Parkview Health, a 15-hospital system headquartered in Fort Wayne, Ind., plans to affiliate with Goshen (Ind.) Health. The system comprises Goshen Hospital, a 105-bed facility; Goshen Center for Cancer Care; Goshen Heart and Vascular Center; Goshen Physicians, a physician-led group of family medicine providers and specialists; and 40 care locations.
15. Morgantown, W.Va.-based WVU Health System in June signed a definitive agreement to acquire Greensburg, Pa.-based Independence Health System, which operates five hospitals. The transaction, which is projected to close this fall, would see WVU Health expand significantly in Pennsylvania and increase the number of hospitals in its footprint to 30.
16. Winston-Salem, N.C.-based Novant Health in June acquired Community Hospital of Stokes, a 53-bed critical access hospital in Danbury, N.C. The transaction increases the number of hospitals in Novant’s footprint to 20.
17. Charlotte, N.C.-based Atrium Health and Raleigh, N.C.-based WakeMed Health & Hospitals plan to combine into a single health system. The proposed transaction would bring WakeMed under Atrium Health, part of Charlotte-based Advocate Health. The deal is subject to regulatory review, which is expected to take several months.
18. Ontario, Calif.-based Prime Healthcare in May acquired Franciscan Health Olympia Fields (Ill.), making it the system’s ninth hospital in Illinois. In February, the health system acquired Lewiston-based Central Maine Healthcare, a three-hospital system. Prime now operates 55 hospitals across 15 states.
19. Sioux Falls, S.D.-based Sanford Health and Robbinsdale, Minn.-based North Memorial Health have signed a definitive agreement to combine as a single nonprofit system. The deal would see Sanford, a 58-hospital system, combine with North Memorial, a two-hospital system with more than 22 clinics across the Twin Cities region.
20. Pittsburgh-based UPMC has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Steubenville, Ohio-based Trinity Health System, a three-hospital system owned and operated by Chicago-based CommonSpirit. The acquisition would see UPMC enter the Ohio hospital market.
21. Irving, Texas-based Christus Health, which comprises more than 60 hospitals, acquired Titus Regional Medical Center, effective May 1. The board of the 173-bed hospital voted in February to proceed with the sale of the independent hospital to Christus.
22. Orlando (Fla.) Health plans to acquire Anniston, Ala.-based RMC Health System, continuing its push into Alabama. RMC is a nonprofit system that includes a 375-bed medical center, 200 physicians and nearly 2,000 employees. The transaction is expected to close this fall, with RMC joining Orlando Health’s Alabama Region alongside Baptist Health.
23. Sacramento, Calif.-based Sutter Health plans to acquire Minneapolis-based Allina Health, creating a combined nonprofit organization spanning California, Minnesota and Wisconsin. The proposed transaction would create a $26 billion system that would include 39 hospitals, more than 400 care sites and 88,000 employees. The deal is expected to close by the end of 2026, pending regulatory approval.
24. La Crosse, Wis.-based Emplify Health is exploring a potential affiliation with Viroqua, Wis.-based Vernon Health. Emplify was formed when La Crosse-based Gundersen Health System and Green Bay, Wis.-based Bellin Health merged in 2022. It has 11 hospitals, more than 100 clinics and 15,000 employees, including over 1,400 clinicians. Vernon is a nonprofit, independent system with a hospital, four clinics and three retail pharmacies.
25. Universal Health Services, a for-profit system headquartered in King of Prussia, Pa., plans to acquire online behavioral health provider Talkspace in an $835 million deal. Talkspace, which has a network of about 6,000 licensed behavioral health professionals, reported $229 million in revenue and provided more than 1.6 million patient sessions in 2025. UHS includes 29 acute-care hospitals, 346 behavioral health inpatient facilities, 35 freestanding emergency departments, a health plan (Prominence Health) and more than 130 outpatient facilities.
26. Billings (Mont.) Clinic plans to affiliate with Sheridan (Wyo.) Memorial Hospital, an 88-bed acute care facility, with the after the Sheridan County Board of County Commissioners unanimously approving an agreement in March. Billings Clinic merged with Kalispell, Mont.-based Logan Health; the combined independent system now encompasses 25 hospitals, including 16 regional partnerships with critical access hospitals and clinics.
27. Corvallis, Ore.-based Samaritan Health Services plans to merge with Tacoma, Wash.-based MultiCare Health System, creating an 18-hospital system with more than 33,000 employees. The transaction, which is expected to close in mid-2026, would bring Samaritan under the MultiCare umbrella.
28. West Orange, N.J.-based RWJBarnabas Health in January signed a definitive agreement to acquire Englewood Health. Under the agreement, RWJBarnabas Health would invest about $500 million in Englewood Health to support expanded outpatient services and community health programs, as well as other strategic investments.
29. NYC Health + Hospitals, New York City’s public health system, plans to acquire Brooklyn, N.Y.-based Maimonides Health. Under the proposed deal, Maimonides would receive up to $2.2 billion over five years through a state grant announced in October. Maimonides and NYC Health + Hospitals are continuing to work with stakeholders toward a final deal, which would see NYC Health + Hospitals become a 14-hospital system.
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