The strategy moves into a state where multiple other healthcare nonprofits are already jockeying for market share.
Back-to-back announcements made this week by the organization formerly known as Carolinas HealthCare System foretell more changes to the Southeast’s healthcare industry landscape.
The system, based in Charlotte, N.C., announced Wednesday that it would take on a new name: Atrium Health. Then the organization announced Thursday it would branch out of its current service areas in North and South Carolina, to enter into a strategic partnership in Georgia.
Atrium signed a letter of intent with Macon-based nonprofit Navicent Health, with Navicent expected to become part of the Atrium organization.
Related: Carolinas HealthCare, UNC Health Plan Merger
“This is the first major partnership of its type in the Southeast region and ensures a Macon-based institution will continue to be the leading driver of healthcare in central Georgia and beyond, while continuing to elevate the care that is provided locally,” Navicent Health President and CEO Ninfa M. Saunders, MD, FACHE, said in a statement Thursday.
“This will also give us access to Atrium Health’s wide array of award-winning, proven successes and best practices in healthcare delivery that we can deploy in our service areas,” Saunders added.
Atrium is also looking to combine forces with UNC Health Care, based in Chapel Hill, N.C. The plan, announced last summer, is expected to create one of the largest hospital systems in the country, with 60 hospitals and about 90,000 employees, as The Charlotte Observer reported.
Although the details have not been finalized, the Atrium-Navicent letter of intent will pave the way for more thorough discussion, negotiation, and due diligence, Thursday’s announcement stated.
The Atrium incursion into Georgia comes as multiple other nonprofit health systems are pursuing mergers and acquisitions of their own in the state. Emory Healthcare signed a letter of intent late last fall with DeKalb Medical Center in Decatur, and Piedmont Healthcare is awaiting final approval on a deal with Columbus Regional Health.
Atrium President and CEO Gene Woods said the Navicent partnership is "another way to breathe life into our mission to care for all."
Steven Porter is an associate content manager and Strategy editor for HealthLeaders, a Simplify Compliance brand.