Lehigh Valley Health Network and Philadelphia-based Jefferson Health announced plans to merge, according to an announcement by leadership from both networks Tuesday.
LVHN and Jefferson have signed a non-binding letter of intent to create an integrated care delivery system. If the plan goes through, the merger would result in a network with a national research university, an expanded not-for-profit health plan, 30 hospitals, more than 700 outpatient sites, and more than 62,000 employed faculty, clinicians and staff across eastern Pennsylvania and southern New Jersey.
According to an LVHN news release, Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia as well as Jefferson Health Plans, formerly Health Partners Plans, which offers offers Medicaid, Medicare and CHIP plans, will be part of the merger.
Dr. Brian Nester, president and CEO of LVHN, said that Jefferson is an ideal partner that shares LVHN’s culture and values. He also touted the opportunities and advantages that the Jefferson merger will provide toward integrated care as well as academic and talent development.
“We are thrilled to be combining with Jefferson and excited about the immediate and long-term benefits this combination will create for the communities of the Lehigh Valley and eastern Pennsylvania,” Nester said in a released statement.
But before the two nonprofit health systems can merge, further negotiations are needed, as is the execution of a definitive agreement. The agreement also must receive regulatory approvals and complete yet-to-be-set closing conditions.
In a quote from an LVHN news release, Dr. Joseph Cacchione, CEO of Jefferson, said the health care landscape and needs in each system’s respective communities are changing and the merger represents an evolution, one that will grow and protect access to affordable, high-quality and innovative care. He said this is especially true for patients from historically under-served backgrounds and communities.
LVHN traces its start to 1899 when Allentown Hospital opened at 17th and Chew streets. The health network’s flagship location on Cedar Crest Boulevard in Salisbury Township opened in 1974 as a joint venture between Allentown and Sacred Heart hospitals. Sacred Heart later pulled out of the venture, and the medical center eventually became known as Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest.
The ensuing decades saw massive growth for the health network, which acquired hospitals from the Poconos to Schuylkill County. In recent years, LVHN has opened new hospitals in Northampton and Carbon counties.
This story will be updated.
Source: Berkshire mont