The Idaho attorney general has approved the sale of Ascension's St. Joseph Regional Medical Center to RCCH HealthCare Partners, a for-profit hospital company formed through the merger of RegionalCare and Capella Healthcare.
The sale marks the second announced so far this year by Ascension. In January, the Catholic health system said it would sell Ministry St. Joseph's Hospital in Marshfield, Wis., to Marshfield Clinic.
Ascension CEO Anthony Tersigni recently told Modern Healthcare the sprawling healthcare system uses a process called “ministry configuration” to analyze its portfolio and see if some assets may be better off with other systems.
The sale of St. Joseph Regional was subject to approval by Idaho Attorney General Lawrence Wasden because the facility will be converted from a not-for-profit to a for-profit entity.
Under terms of the deal, St. Louis-based Ascension will donate $23 million to a foundation formed by the attorney general that will benefit the Lewiston, Idaho, community where St. Joseph Regional is based.
Additionally, RCCH HealthCare will invest $57 million for up-to-date equipment, technology and ambulatory-care facilities over the next five years for St. Joseph Regional. The company will also maintain all employees, which includes 120 physicians and providers.
Brentwood, Tenn.-based RCCH HealthCare was formed last year after the $550 million merger of RegionalCare Hospital Partners and Capella Healthcare. The combined company operates 17 health systems in a dozen states with more than 14,000 employees and 2,000 affiliated physicians.
RCCH HealthCare Partners has announced it will also buy Lourdes Health in Pasco, Wash., from Ascension.
Ascension is the nation's largest not-for-profit hospital company with fiscal 2016 revenue of $21.9 billion.
