California company buys St. Clare's
ONTARIO, CALIF. — Prime Healthcare Services has completed its acquisition of the Saint Clare’s Health System in New Jersey.
The transaction closed on July 31, 2015, with the effective date of the sale deferred until today.
Included in the sale are Saint Clare’s Hospital in Boonton, Saint Clare’s Hospital in Denville, Saint Clare’s Hospital in Dover and Saint Clare’s Health Center at Sussex, as well as other facilities in Morris and Sussex counties. The transaction does not include Franciscan Oaks, a continuing care retirement community, and the Saint Clare’s Foundation.
Saint Clare’s Health System has served the health care needs of northwestern New Jersey residents since 1895, and is the region’s premier provider of community-based health care and behavioral health services. It's three hospitals have 478 licensed beds and provide jobs to 2,500 employees. In 2014 alone, Saint Clare’s treated more than 60,000 patients in their emergency department facilities, and had more than 118,000 outpatient visits, making the system an integral and life-saving community asset.
Under the asset purchase agreement between Prime Healthcare and Catholic Health Initiatives (CHI), Prime has pledged to hire substantially all employees at Saint Clare’s Health System; invest $30 million in capital improvements at Saint Clare’s facilities over the next five years; maintain charity care at or above current levels at the hospitals; and will continue to follow the Catholic ethical and religious directives for health care services.
“Prime Healthcare looks forward to expanding its presence in the Garden State and partnering with the Saint Clare’s community of dedicated physicians, nurses and employees,” said Prem Reddy, Md., FACC, FCCP, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Prime Healthcare Services. “We are committed to providing the best quality care in each and every community we serve and the addition of Saint Clare’s to the Prime Healthcare family will allow us to continue that tradition.”
Peter Banko, CHI senior vice president and group executive officer, noted that the transaction received approval after a thorough review by the New Jersey Department of Health and Office of the New Jersey Attorney General that began in mid-2013.
“With Prime’s growing presence in New Jersey, I believe they will work hard to secure Saint Clare’s future under the new model of health care, which focuses on improving overall health for specific geographic populations,” Banko said. “Saint Clare’s has a long history of serving the residents of northwestern New Jersey and Prime will position Saint Clare’s to continue the delivery of care and critical services to the community.”
Saint Clare’s Health System is Joint Commission accredited, is certified as a primary stroke center and holds the commission’s Gold Seal of Approval for hip and knee replacement. In addition to a number of other awards and recognitions, which includes the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s designation as a Pathway to Excellence hospital, Saint Clare’s has continuously received a safety score of “straight A’s” since 2012 by The Leapfrog Group for its Denville and Dover locations, the only hospitals in Morris County to receive this recognition.