Brentwood, Tenn.-based LifePoint Health and Watertown (Wis.) Regional Medical Center have finalized a joint venture to own and operate the 55-bed hospital.
LifePoint will own 80% of the hospital, while Watertown Regional will retain a 20% stake, according to a news release. Together, the two companies will invest $100 million into the hospital over the next 10 years, focusing on technology improvements, service expansion and facility improvements.
Because LifePoint is for-profit, Watertown Regional will become a tax-paying organization. Richard Keddington will become the hospital's CEO on Sept. 14, replacing John Kosanovich, who will retire after leading the hospital for 20 years.
Keddington, 34, will lead the hospital after serving as CEO of Milwaukee-based Select Specialty Hospital for the past five years.
Governance of the hospital will be shared through a board with equal representation from the hospital and LifePoint. The 64-hospital system has committed to hiring all of the hospital's employees in the new venture, subject to standard pre-employment screenings.
Proceeds from the joint venture, the amount of which was not disclosed, will be used to pay off the hospital's existing financial obligations, and remaining assets will be used to create the Greater Watertown Community Health Foundation, a not-for-profit charitable foundation focused on the region's health and wellness.
LifePoint has expanded heavily over the past couple years in new small and rural markets. Many of its acquisitions have been part of Duke LifePoint Healthcare, a joint-venture operation with not-for-profit Duke University Health System.
