MARSHFIELD – Marshfield Clinic Health System plans to combine with Sanford Health later this year.
The nonprofit health systems announced Wednesday morning in a joint release their intent to combine their assets and capabilities to create an integrated health system and advance health care in the rural Midwest. Sanford Health serves communities in South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota and Iowa, while Marshfield Clinic Health System serves in communities throughout Wisconsin and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
The partnership is expected to close by the end of the year, subject to regulatory processes and closing conditions. Both companies will remain separate and independent organizations until the deal is closed.
When the deal is complete, Sanford Health will serve as the parent company, headquartered in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Marshfield Clinic Health System will be a region within Sanford Health and will maintain regional leadership and its flagship campus in Marshfield, keep its regional board of directors and regional physician executive council and maintain its brand, according to the release.
Sanford Health President and CEO Bill Gassen will serve as president and CEO of the combined system, and Marshfield Clinic Health System Interim CEO Dr. Brian ho*rneman will serve as president and CEO of the Marshfield Clinic Health System region.
Gassen and ho*rneman told a USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin reporter there may be opportunities to co-brand certain services or programs in the future, but both Sanford Health and Marshfield Clinic Health System will maintain their existing branding and names.
According to the release, there are no immediate changes planned for employees or systems. When the two organizations combine, they will operate 56 hospitals with 56,000 employees and 4,300 providers. The organizations’ nationally recognized research institutions, specialty pharmacies and health plans — Sanford Health Plan and Security Health Plan — will be integrated, as well.
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What is Sanford Health?
According to the release, Sanford Health is the largest rural health system in the country. About 2,900 Sanford physicians and providers serve 1.4 million patients through 45 hospitals, 221 clinics and more than 160 Good Samaritan Society senior living centers. Sanford Health is running 540 active clinical trials and operates nine Sanford World Clinic locations around the world, offering broad primary care services, regenerative medicine, specialized procedures and more services to populations around the world.
According to its website, Sanford Health operates various Centers of Excellence, focusing on cancer care, children’s health, heart, women’s health and orthopedics and sports medicine.
According to the release, Sanford Health has invested more than $1.5 billion in communities across South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota and Iowa over the last 10 years, expanding access to specialty care and state-of-the-art facilities.
What is Marshfield Clinic Health System?
More than 1,400 providers serve Marshfield Clinic Health System across Wisconsin and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, focusing on 170 specialties. Marshfield Clinic Health System operates research and education programs and its Security Health Plan.
Marshfield Clinic Health System operates more than 60 Marshfield Clinic sites, 11 hospitals, Marshfield Children’s Hospital, the Marshfield Clinic Research Institute and the Marshfield Clinic Health System Foundation.
What does this partnership mean for patients?
ho*rneman told a USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin reporter patients will see very little change in service, especially at the beginning of the partnership. He said since Sanford Health and Marshfield Clinic Health System are closely aligned in their missions and the challenges they face, the connection between the two organizations will continue to prioritize continued and improved access to rural areas.
Gassen agreed, adding patients can expect to see continued investment in communities and expanded access in the years to come, both from Sanford Health and Marshfield Clinic Health System. They want to build on the decades of work each system has already brought to communities and work to meet changing demands in financially sustainable ways, he said.
How is this partnership different than other merger attempts?
ho*rneman told a USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin reporter other attempts at mergers — like discussions Marshfield Clinic Health System had with Essentia Health — were lengthy discussions that ultimately ended with both organizations open to future collaborations on projects but weren’t a good fit to merge.
Discussions around the partnership with Sanford Health have been entirely different, ho*rneman said. Both organizations have similar missions and culture and have aligned priorities to focus on serving rural communities.
Gassen said there are many commonalities between the two organizations, from a shared mission and values to prioritizing communities while working to improve access, quality and availability of rural health care. He said a common sentiment shared as both organizations continued discussions was how natural the fit feels between the two.
In the news release, ho*rneman said the partnership offers an “incredible opportunity” to unify the organizations and establish a premier rural health system in the country.
“Together, we will ensure sustainable access to exceptional care for our communities for years to come,” ho*rneman said. “With a shared mission to serve, a mutual emphasis on research and education, and a strong tradition of physician leadership, Sanford Health is the ideal partner for this endeavor.”
How will this help address challenges in providing rural health care?
ho*rneman told a USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin reporter there are many challenges both organizations have been facing when it comes to providing rural health care, including insufficient or declining reimbursem*nt rates, increasing costs of pharmaceuticals, increasing costs related to attracting and retaining skilled staff, supply costs and more.
ho*rneman said the collaboration with Sanford Health will allow both organizations to address some of the biggest issues in providing rural health care head-on. Combined, both organizations reach rural communities on more of a national scale, and together, they can work to determine best practices and understand how they can offer better access and better care that is still cost-efficient. Some issues are bigger than any health system can solve on its own, ho*rneman said, but they’re important to discuss, as communities depend on systems like Sanford Health and Marshfield Clinic Health System.
One challenge in providing rural health care, especially in Wisconsin, has been serving an aging population. Sanford Health has been working with an affiliate, the Good Samaritan Society, since 2019, Gassen said. That partnership has allowed Sanford Health to invest in senior care locations and nursing and rehab facilities. When those two organizations merged, it created unique opportunities for Sanford Health to meet existing demands for acute and post-acute care.
Another challenge has been maintaining enough staffing to provide seamless care and transitions for patients. Many rural communities struggle with a nursing home “bottleneck,” causing patient backups all the way to emergency departments. Gassen said the Sanford locations in communities that work with the Good Samaritan Society are better staffed, have had more seamless transitions and are able to optimize care and efficiency. Locations without that partnership have seen similar struggles.
A benefit of partnering Sanford Health and Marshfield Clinic Health System will be listening to what programs and efforts are working and collaborating on ways to work together to create programs and opportunities to solve some of the biggest challenges, Gassen said.
What does this partnership mean for rural medical care and research?
According to the release, combining Sanford Health and Marshfield Clinic Health System will improve patient outcomes by providing broader health initiatives, care programs and innovative care delivery models. The partnership aims to utilize technology to focus on virtual care, digital health, data analytics and use artificial intelligence and genomic medicine to advance community health.
Combining Sanford Health and Marshfield Clinic Health System would also strengthen training, education and support for future physicians and caregivers through shared initiatives. According to the release, the combined organizations would create graduate medical education programs and establish strong partnerships with educational institutions across the shared region.
According to the release, the partnership would create new opportunities for research, collaboration, enhanced professional development and training and would create robust peer networks.
Gassen told a USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin reporter there are already great opportunities in front of Sanford Health and Marshfield Clinic Health System, including offering more than 1,000 clinical trials neither organization could do on its own. Those trials bring more opportunities for more cures for more patients, he said. Together, the two organizations can work together to address challenges and advocate for the right programs that are needed in rural communities in sustainable ways, he said.
What about health insurance?
ho*rneman and Gassen said Sanford Health Plan and Security Health Plan will continue as separate and distinct legal entities but will share common governance. They said patients with these plans will see very little change as the partnership deal finalizes.
For patients who have outside health insurance coverage from other companies, both ho*rneman and Gassen said they don’t foresee any coverage changes for patients. Both said health insurance plans are important pieces of providing quality rural health care, and both organizations want to continue expanding patient access to care.
Contact Caitlin atcshuda@gannett.comor follow her on Twitter@CaitlinShuda.
