Community Health Systems announced Friday it completed the divestiture of four South Carolina hospitals to the Medical University of South Carolina Hospital Authority in Charleston.
Subsidiaries of Franklin, Tenn.-based CHS sold 82-bed Chester (S.C.) Regional Medical Center; 225-bed Springs Memorial Hospital in Lancaster; 396-bed Carolinas Hospital System in Florence; and 124-bed Carolinas Hospital System-Marion in Mullins, along with their related physician practices, outpatient services and related businesses, to MUSC Health.
As part of the transaction, CHS said in a news release MUSC assumed the long-term lease and operations of Chester Regional Medical Center. The transaction is effective March 1. The four hospitals are among the planned divestitures discussed on CHS' fourth-quarter 2018 earnings call.
In a news release, MUSC said the total sale price is $176 million, which it will fund through a $137 million U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development loan and the assumption of certain leases.
MUSC President Dr. David Cole said in the release he welcomes his new colleagues and is grateful for the hard work that moved the transaction forward.
"The commitment and enthusiasm has been exceptional," he said. "We could not be more excited about what this symbolizes for the future of health care delivery and connectivity for our state."
The four hospitals combined delivered more than 129,000 emergency department visits, 159,000 outpatient visits and 18,800 hospital admissions in 2017, MUSC said in its release. MUSC said it now employs more than 16,400 people in South Carolina. The CEOs of each hospital will become MUSC senior leaders, the system said.
