Marshfield (Wis.) Clinic Health System put off its plans to build a new hospital and instead struck a deal to buy a rival hospital.
Marshfield Clinic and Ministry Health Care announced a nonbinding agreement Friday for the purchase of Ministry St. Joseph's Hospital in Marshfield.
As part of the deal, Ministry—part of St. Louis-based Ascension Health's Wisconsin division—will acquire the Diagnostic and Treatment Center in Weston, Wis., from the Marshfield Clinic.
The parties said the deal would not affect the level of clinical and physician services at Marshfield's Wausau or Weston locations.
The plans put the breaks on a plan by Marshfield to build a hospital, which had gained city approval and was scheduled to open in 2018.
In January, the city of Marshfield's Plan Commission approved two conditional-use permits that cleared the way for Marshfield Clinic to move ahead on construction of a hospital, according to the Hub City Times.
Ministry, however, protested the plans for the hospital, according to the newspaper's account of the meeting. Ministry's attorney argued that the community couldn't support two hospitals.
Marshfield Clinic CEO Dr. Susan Turney said in a statement that the deal to buy St. Joseph's means Marshfield will hold off its building plans while it evaluates the facility and finalizes the transaction.
"While we know the community will need an updated, state-of-the-art facility in the near future, acquiring St. Joseph's offers new options that should be researched, evaluated and considered," Turney said. "We will conduct a thorough evaluation of St. Joseph's to determine what additional upgrades and investment make sense and what future role the building can play in how we care for the Marshfield community."
Marshfield Clinic reported an operating revenue of about $2 billion in fiscal 2014, according to Modern Healthcare's hospital systems financial database.
