Ascension & Providence St. Joseph In Talks To Form Largest Hospital Operator In The U.S.

Ascension Health (Ascension) and Providence St. Joseph Health are reportedly in talks to merge. If the merger occurs, the new system would overtake the Hospital Corporation of America as the largest hospital chain in the United States.

The merger would continue the trend of high-profile mergers in health care in the U.S., where 60% of hospitals are “private non-profits.” Other more notable recent and/or upcoming mergers in health care include CVS Health purchasing Aetna, a merger between Catholic Health Initiatives and Dignity Health, and the merging of Advocate Health Care and Aurora Health Care.

Ascension, the . . .