Stayton, Ore.-based Santiam Hospitals and Clinics have signed a nonbinding letter of intent with Corvallis, Ore.-based Samaritan Health Services to merge.
The letter will allow both parties to look more closely at an affiliation together, with an end goal of Santiam Hospital and Clinics joining Samaritan Health Services, according to a May 22 Samaritan Health Services news release.
Should the parties join, the goal would be to strengthen local access to care services, improve health equity, and increase community provided services.
Both Santiam Hospitals and Clinics and Samaritan Health Services are dedicated to retaining existing employees and keeping local governance and leadership.
The parties plan to work toward a definitive agreement in the next few months. The merger could be subject to regulatory review.
Santiam Hospital and Clinics is a nonprofit organization that comprises an acute care hospital and 11 clinics. It has more than 600 employees, including 70 medical staff.
Samaritan Health is a nonprofit regional health system that features five community hospitals, over 100 physician clinics and multiple health insurance plans. It has 6,000 employees, including 620 physicians, according to the release