Dive Brief:
- Maryland-based Bon Secours Health System and Mercy Health of Ohio said Wednesday they have completed their merger. Together, the tie-up will create one of the largest healthcare systems in the country, the companies said.
- The combined health system will operate 43 hospitals across seven states, which makes it the fifth largest Catholic health system, pulling in annual revenue of $8 billion.
- Mercy Health CEO John Starcher will lead the combined company, which will now have a significant footprint in everything from acute care facilities to outpatient centers from Ohio all the way to the East Coast, dotting the region from New York to Florida.
Dive Insight:
While vertical integration in the healthcare space is getting the most attention, horizontal deals are still happening across the country. Advocate and Aurora completed their merger in April, creating the 10th largest nonprofit integrated system in the U.S. Earlier this week, HCA Healthcare wrapped up its deal to buy Mission Health for $1.5 billion.
And there are no signs of a slowdown. The second quarter of 2018 was the 15th in a row with more than 200 M&A deals in healthcare. That consolidation continues as providers try to beef up and gain scale over payers who are consolidating just as quickly.
The moves come as within weeks the Department of Justice is expected to approve the blockbuster mergers of CVS-Aetna and Cigna-Express Scripts, the Wall Street Journal reported.
The merger between Bon Secours and Mercy allows the two to "leverage economies of scale by integrating resources and teams," according to a statement that first announced the deal earlier this year.