UC San Diego Health and Escondido, Calif.-based Palomar Health on July 1 completed a joint powers authority, forming a new health system called Palomar UC San Diego Health.
The JPA combines Palomar Health’s community-based hospitals with the academic and specialty resources of UC San Diego Health, the region’s only academic health system, according to a July 2 news release. The new entity oversees Escondido and Poway hospitals, though Palomar UC San Diego Health and UC San Diego Health remain separate systems with independent licenses and medical staffs.
A JPA is a legal entity that allows two public health agencies to jointly run hospitals and clinics, share decisions and improve care for the community, according to the release.
“Palomar UC San Diego Health creates a new blueprint for healthcare in California,” UC San Diego Health CEO Patty Maysent said in the release. “This new system, focused on North San Diego County, will grow and enhance healthcare services while offering increased access to advanced specialty care, close to home.”
Diane Hansen, who served as CEO of Palomar Health, will serve as CEO of the JPA. She, Ms. Maysent and the JPA board will oversee Palomar UC San Diego Health’s long-term strategy from the launch of new clinical services and building expansions to investments in new equipment and projects.
Early priorities include developing two shelled floors at the Escondido hospital for expanded cancer, cardiovascular and other complex specialty services, according to Ms. Maysent. Moores Cancer Center at UC San Diego Health, an NCI-designated comprehensive cancer center, will work with Escondido-based cancer teams to build out those services, with more details expected in summer 2026.
In March 2025, Palomar Health borrowed $20 million from UC San Diego Health to continue providing patient care. That July, the sides entered into exclusive talks to create the JPA.
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