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Henry Ford Health introduced Wednesday that it has signed an settlement to hitch with Ascension Michigan and Genesys to create a $10.5 billion well being system based mostly in Detroit with 13 acute-care hospitals, roughly 50,000 workers and greater than 550 websites for regional well being care.
“Together we can expand health care services and deliver innovations in care — from prevention and early detection through the treatment of complex conditions — to more people and communities across our state, including those who are most vulnerable,” Robert Riney, president and CEO of Henry Ford Health, stated in an announcement. “We share a deeply-rooted dedication to providing world-class healthcare that everyone deserves, regardless of geographic, demographic, or socioeconomic status.”
The settlement was described as neither a merger nor an acquisition. Rather, Henry Ford Health says it’s a three way partnership that features no trade of money. The deal should endure regulatory evaluation, however the leaders of Henry Ford Health and Ascension Michigan hope to finish the transaction by summer time.
Riney is to guide the group, which might stay headquartered in Detroit and carry Henry Ford Health’s identify and branding. It can be ruled by a board of administrators with representatives from each Henry Ford Health and Ascension Michigan. At least for now, the Catholic id of the Ascension Michigan services would proceed.
Few details on proposed deal, which could face regulatory challenges
Neither Henry Ford Health nor Ascension Michigan would grant the Free Press an interview with any of the leaders who negotiated the agreement. They also did not answer roughly two dozen questions about how the union of these health systems would affect the hundreds of thousands of patients they treat or their employees.
Henry Ford spokesperson Dana Jay said only: “We look forward to addressing more details about this joint venture down the road; the press release and fast facts material have what we can share for now.”
It remains unclear:
- Who would own the newly combined health system.
- How soon Henry Ford’s branding would be applied to Ascension Michigan properties.
- How prices for services and insurance coverage at the hospitals might be affected.
- Whether there would be layoffs or site closures as a result of the deal or how existing labor unions would be affected.
- How much of the market share this combined health system could have in the region.
The answer to that last question is likely to be of big interest to federal and state regulators, who are to review the terms of the deal and determine whether it complies with antitrust laws.
In 2021, President Joe Biden issued an executive order directing the Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Justice Department to reevaluate and toughen federal guidelines for mergers and acquisitions, together with these in well being care, to stop monopolies and enterprise offers that might restrict competitors with a market.
Feds blocked 2022 Utah, New Jersey mergers
While hospital leaders typically say mergers might help them reduce prices, drive innovation and supply larger entry to care, multiple research studies have proven that hospital consolidation can result in increased costs for shoppers and in addition drive down high quality of care by decreasing competitors inside a market. It can also cut back entry to care and result in worker layoffs and pay cuts.
In July, the Justice Department and FTC issued new draft guidelines, which might prohibit mergers that improve focus in extremely concentrated markets or eradicate substantial competitors between corporations.
Last 12 months, the administration blocked a merger between HCA Healthcare and Steward Health Care System in Utah and RWJBarnabas Health and St. Peter’s Healthcare System in New Jersey.
If the mixed Henry Ford Health/Ascension Michigan deal passes regulatory muster, there would nonetheless be 5 large-scale opponents in southeastern Michigan: Corewell Health, The Detroit Medical Center, Trinity Health, McLaren Health Care and the University of Michigan Health.
Ascension, dealing with losses, is promoting hospitals
Many well being methods throughout the U.S. are financially struggling within the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and amid a staffing scarcity and file ranges of inflation. The prices of labor and provides are going up whereas Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements stay stagnant.
Ascension, which is predicated in St. Louis, reported an operating loss of $3 billion in fiscal 12 months 2023, and is promoting lots of its holdings, together with seven subsidiary hospitals that have been a part of Milwaukee-based Ministry Health Care, which have been offered to Aspirus Health.
When hospitals merge or are acquired to type bigger well being methods, they’ve larger leverage in terms of negotiating costs to get increased reimbursements from insurance coverage corporations and decrease costs from suppliers.
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan President and CEO Daniel Loepp issued the next assertion Wednesday, which learn, partly: “Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan is proud of our long-term partnership with Henry Ford Health and Ascension to promote better outcomes and experiences for patients, while continuing to address high-quality care and affordability through value-based reimbursements.”
Henry Ford, Ascension have differing values
Several different questions stay about how the mixed well being system would function, together with how they’d handle the variations between them in terms of reproductive well being care and the therapy of LGBTQ+ sufferers and workers.
Ascension is a Catholic, nonprofit hospital system that abides by the Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services established by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Holly Fournier, affiliate director of communications for the Archdiocese of Detroit, instructed the Free Press in a earlier interview.
The directives are based mostly on the Catholic Church’s instructing that life begins at conception and that sexual activity is a sacred act of procreation. The directives prohibit the usage of contraception, in addition to sterilization procedures, abortion and in vitro fertilization.
The directives additionally have an effect on LGBTQ+ care, one thing Henry Ford has lengthy touted, pledging on its website that it’s “committed to providing safe, equitable care for all and supporting people in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ+) community with their healthcare needs.”
Henry Ford provides gender reassignment surgical procedures, gender-affirming hormone therapy and has a PRIDE Employee Resource Group.
Neither Henry Ford nor Ascension answered questions on whether or not the Archdiocese of Detroit or the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Ethical and Religious Directives would play any function in defining how LGBTQ+ care and reproductive well being care is supplied/delivered at Ascension properties.
Affected properties
The following Ascension southeast Michigan and Genesys well being care properties can be included within the deal:
- Ascension St. John Hospital
- Ascension River District Hospital
- Ascension Genesys Hospital
- Ascension Macomb-Oakland Hospital, Madison Heights Campus
- Ascension Macomb-Oakland Hospital, Warren Campus
- Ascension Providence Hospital, Novi Campus
- Ascension Brighton Center for Recovery
- Ascension Providence Hospital, Southfield Campus
- Ascension Providence Rochester Hospital
The following Henry Ford hospitals and different property, together with Health Alliance Plan, additionally can be included as a part of the three way partnership:
- Henry Ford Hospital
- Henry Ford West Bloomfield Hospital
- Henry Ford Wyandotte Hospital
- Henry Ford Kingswood Hospital
- Henry Ford Macomb Hospital
- Henry Ford Jackson Hospital
Ascension Michigan’s southwest and northern hospitals are to stay a part of Ascension’s nationwide holdings and proceed to supply Catholic well being care:
- Ascension Borgess Hospital
- Ascension Borgess Allegan Hospital
- Ascension Borgess-Lee Hospital
- Ascension Borgess-Pipp Hospital
- Ascension St. Joseph Hospital
- Ascension St. Mary’s Hospital
- Ascension Standish Hospital
Contact Kristen Shamus: kshamus@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @kristenshamus.
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