Bloomington, Minn.-based HealthPartners and Duluth, Minn.-based Essentia Health plan to combine to form a 22-hospital nonprofit health system with more than 135 clinics and 6,000 clinicians.
Six things to know:
1. The organizations’ boards approved an affiliation agreement to combine, according to a Sept. 29 joint news release. The transaction is expected to take effect Jan. 1, pending regulatory approvals.
2. The combined organization will operate as HealthPartners and employ about 45,000 people. Essentia Health facilities will retain the Essentia name as operations are integrated.
3. HealthPartners President and CEO Andrea Walsh will lead the combined organization. Essentia Health CEO David Herman, MD, will serve as president of combined clinical care group operations. Dr. Herman has led Essentia since 2015.
4. The systems said the combination will expand specialty care and investments in digital health, research, data analytics and workforce development. HealthPartners currently serves more than 1.4 million patients in Minnesota and Wisconsin and 1.6 million medical and dental health plan members nationwide. Essentia operates 14 hospitals and 80 clinics across Minnesota, North Dakota and Wisconsin.
5. The proposed combination comes amid a period of significant health system consolidation in Minnesota. Sioux Falls, S.D.-based Sanford Health completed its acquisition of Robbinsdale, Minn.-based North Memorial Health on Sept. 1, creating a 60-hospital system. In addition, Sacramento, Calif.-based Sutter Health is pursuing a combination with Minneapolis-based Allina Health that would create a $26 billion, 39-hospital system.
6. Several unions — including the Minnesota Nurses Association, SEIU Healthcare MN & IA, AFSCME Council 65 and OPEIU Local 12 — and community organizations urged state officials to closely examine the HealthPartners-Essentia transaction.
“As with the other deals, workers are worried about cuts to jobs and services, and patients are worried about rising costs,” the organizations said in a statement shared with Becker’s. “… We are hopeful that HealthPartners and Essentia will take the process seriously by engaging with workers and patients and sign a Community Benefits Agreement to guarantee in writing that Minnesotans aren’t hurt by this proposed acquisition.”
