Mission CEO to return to former leadership role at HCA hospital

HCA Mission Hospital CEO Chad Patrick is moving back to his former leadership role at a Florida hospital following years of allegations regarding Mission's market impact and performance.

Patrick, who joined the Asheville, North Carolina, hospital in July 2019, will serve as CEO of HCA Florida’s Orange Park Hospital near Jacksonville — a position he held for six years. He will replace Jeff Taylor, who assumed the role in late 2023. Greg Lowe, president of HCA's North Carolina division, will lead Mission Hospital in addition to continuing his system responsibilities, a Mission Health spokesperson said Tuesday.

Related: HCA Healthcare faces more Mission Health-related allegations

The leadership change will help streamline the hospital's administrative structure, drive better communication between leaders and staff and give Mission Hospital more direct access to HCA resources, the spokesperson said.

The spokesperson did not share an exact transition date, but said Lowe is relocating his office to Mission Hospital over the next few weeks. Lowe became president of the North Carolina division in April 2019 after serving as CEO of HCA's Chippenham and Johnston-Willis hospitals in Richmond, Virginia, for two and a half years.

HCA acquired the formerly nonprofit Mission Health, which includes Mission Hospital and five other acute-care hospitals, in early 2019 for $1.5 billion. As part of the deal, HCA promised to maintain similar services at the hospitals for at least 10 years and build new facilities, including a behavioral health hospital.

But it wasn't long before legal challenges arose alleging higher prices, diminished quality standards and inadequate staffing at the facilities, including Mission Hospital.

Six North Carolina residents sued HCA in August 2021, accusing the health system of monopolizing the market and inflating prices. A judge tossed the monopoly complaint in 2022, but ruled the plaintiffs do have standing to argue that HCA unlawfully restrained trade. In June 2022, the city of Brevard, North Carolina — where Mission's Transylvania Regional Hospital is located — sued HCA for allegedly inflating healthcare costs. HCA said at the time it was disappointed in the city's decision to file a lawsuit, given past productive conversations with officials.

More recently, North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein (D) filed a lawsuit against HCA in December, alleging it breached the terms of its acquisition agreement with the state. Buncombe County, where Mission Hospital is located, filed a motion earlier this year to join Stein’s lawsuit, but a judge denied the request. Discovery for Stein's case was expected to close this month, according to court documents.

"We are confident that Mission has fulfilled its obligations under the Asset Purchase Agreement, and we intend to defend the lawsuit filed by the Attorney General aggressively. The pleadings that we filed speak for themselves. Unfortunately, the lawsuit continues to be a distraction from the important work that Mission continues to do in Western North Carolina," the Mission Health spokesperson said.