US: Pennsylvania sees healthcare merger proposal

UPMC is pursuing an ambitious deal to affiliate with Harrisburg-based PinnacleHealth System, according to two people familiar with the talks, potentially giving UPMC entry into a Central Pennsylvania market dominated by Blue Cross Blue Shield health insurance plans.

In a prepared statement, PinnacleHealth spokeswoman Kelly McCall said the system “and its board of directors continue to consider partnership models and strategic opportunities that would serve the best interests of our patients, local employers and other stakeholders.”

Following a period of affiliation, UPMC would acquire Pinnacle’s three-hospital system, which has 636 beds and employs 6,200 people, with the possibility of picking up as many as four smaller hospitals, people familiar with the transaction said.

UPMC is a $14 billion nonprofit enterprise that operates more than 20 hospitals, which are concentrated in Western Pennsylvania.

The deal with PinnacleHealth would be the biggest of its kind for UPMC and a first for the Pittsburgh health system if it is consummated in its entirety. Typically, UPMC has acquired one hospital at a time.

Full Content: Pittsburgh Post Gazette

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