In Case You Missed It: Discussion Between Marshfield Clinic and Gundersen Health Regarding Possible Merger
Wednesday, May 8th, 2019 -- 6:29 AM
(WDLB) -A mega merger may be coming to the health care industry in the upper Midwest. The Marshfield Clinic and Gundersen Health Systems have announced they’re discussing a possible merger.A joint news release says the two organizations are discussing how they might come together to collectively enhance the level of care across Wisconsin, northeast Iowa and southeastern Minnesota. Marshfield Clinic C-E-O Dr. Susan Turney says the two sides are at the very beginning of merger talks, and she says early discussions have focused on dealing with rising costs and lower reimbursements while still trying to serve their mostly-rural populations. Despite ongoing talks between the two sides, Dr. Turney says a merger is not a foregone conclusion.
The two organizations will spend the coming months working out details of a possible merger that could create a health system led by more than two-thousand clinicians and with more than 18-thousand total employees. Dr. Turney added it’s far too early to tell what an integrated system would look like, and how it would be branded.
Turney has no concrete timeline for when an actual merger might take place. She says ideally, the two sides are thinking they might be able to get through everything that has to happen and be ready to complete the deal by the end of this calendar year.
If they were to merge, Marshfield Clinic Health System and Gundersen Health System would have 13 hospitals and more than 100 clinics, which includes medical clinics, eye centers, dental centers, urgent care locations and pharmacies. The Marshfield Clinic Health System’s primary operations include Marshfield Clinic, and Marshfield Medical Center hospitals in Marshfield, Eau Claire, Rice Lake, Neillsville, Beaver Dam and Ladysmith. Gundersen is headquartered in La Crosse, and serves 21 counties in western Wisconsin, southeastern Minnesota and northeast Iowa.
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