Dive Brief:
- South New Jersey-based Kennedy Health, which operates three hospitals, is set to join forces with Philadelphia-based Thomas Jefferson University Hospitals, the Philadelphia Business Journal reported.
- The two announced last week their governing boards had authorized a letter of intent to integrate their organizations.
- If the deal goes through, it will make Kennedy the third recent addition to Jefferson, which merged with Aria Health this month and Abington Health last year.
Dive Insight:
Kennedy President and CEO Joseph Devine indicated the deal is being made to enhance innovation in patient care. "We didn't have to do anything. We want to be part of something bigger that drives innovation," Devine told the Philadelphia Business Journal.
The Journal noted all of Jefferson's deals involve equal representation on the organization's governing board with an aim of improving care throughout the system, not an aim of driving support to Jefferson.
However, it is possible there was some pressure in the decision. While Devine said he had been exploring deals for two years, NJ.com notes this one comes just a few weeks after Devine publicly opposed the possible purchase of land by Inspira Health Network for a new hospital in Harrison Township, which would place it just 6 miles from Kennedy's location in Washington Township.