On Wednesday, Sanford Health and Marshfield Clinic Health System announced their intention to merge.
Sanford Health, headquartered in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, is the largest regional health system in the nation.
Marshfield Clinic Health System has its flagship hospital and campus in Marshfield, Wisconsin, serving rural Wisconsin and the northern Michigan peninsula.
This marks the second time in the past two years that Sanford Health has announced a non-binding memorandum of understanding to merge with another health system.
In 2022, Minneapolis-based Fairview Health Services and Sanford Health announced their intention to merge, but those merger plans were called off eight months later.
Both organisations are optimistic about the future of rural healthcare through the merger, which is expected to complete by the end of this year, subject to regulatory procedures and closing.
“Partnering with Sanford Health represents an exciting opportunity for our organization to consolidate and establish one of the best regional health systems in the nation,” said Brian Horneman, MD, interim CEO of Marshfield Clinic Health System.
If the merger goes through, Sanford Health will be the name of the parent company, headquarters will remain in Sioux Falls and Sanford’s CEO will become CEO of the combined health system, the press release said.
Marshfield Clinic Health System will become a Sanford Health region and will maintain its own regional board of directors, regional physician executive committee and regional brand presence.
The two health care entities have approximately 56,000 employees, 56 hospitals and 4,300 providers. There will be no change in workforce as a result of the merger, according to the press release.
