Morgantown, W.Va.-based WVU Health System reached a settlement with the Pennsylvania attorney general’s office that places conditions on its acquisition of Greensburg, Pa.-based Independence Health System.
The deal marks an expansion of WVU Health System’s Pennsylvania footprint. It has operated Uniontown (Pa.) Hospital since 2020, growing its hospital count in the state from one to six.
Six things to know:
1. The planned acquisition involves two systems — Excela and Butler Health Systems — that include five hospitals, according to a Sept. 2 news release from the office of Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday.
2. The settlement was filed in the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania on Aug. 31. The agreement includes requirements for WVU Health System to maintain services at Independence Health System’s facilities for at least five years and must also provide notice of significant changes in services.
3. WVU Health System signed a definitive agreement June 2 to acquire the system, including plans to invest $800 million into it. The transaction was expected to close in late September or early October. The two organizations announced plans for the acquisition in November 2025.
4. Under the settlement agreement, WVU Health System must negotiate in good faith with health insurance plans, with a last-best-offer binding arbitration backstop if needed. The settlement prohibits certain contract provisions, including anti-tiering, anti-steering, gag, most-favored-nation, exclusivity and all-or-nothing clauses.
The system also cannot terminate existing Independence, Excela and Butler contracts other than for cause.
5. WVU Health System must maintain charity care and financial assistance policies consistent with Pennsylvania Department of Human Services guidance, disclose those policies to patients at registration and maintain a policy prohibiting the sharing of competitively sensitive information between its insurance and provider subsidiaries. Any restricted funds held by IHS, Excela and Butler must continue to be used for their designated purposes, according to the release.
6. WVU Health System did not have an additional comment to share. The system’s president and CEO, Albert Wright Jr., said in a June news release that the partnership is focused on preserving and expanding access to high-quality care.
“By bringing our organizations together, we can strengthen services throughout southwestern Pennsylvania while enhancing opportunities for clinical collaboration, recruitment, research, education and specialty care access,” Mr. Wright said in the June release.
Becker’s has also reached out to Independence Health System for comment and will update this story if more information becomes available.
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