Healthcare mergers and acquisitions are in no short supply as providers, health tech companies, payers and other industry players look to expand their businesses and gain a competitive edge. Here’s a roundup of new deals that were revealed, closed, rumored or called off during the month of August.
Providers
MultiCare Health System and Samaritan Health Services’ pending merger notched a key green light from the Oregon Health Authority. The deal would form a $7.5 billion, 18-hospital system, but still needs to face review from other state programs before moving forward.
Sanford Health secured a 10-year oversight agreement with the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office for its acquisition of North Memorial Health, which then closed on Sept. 1. The deal creates the largest integrated urban-rural health system in Minnesota and brings a $600 million investment from Sanford to North Memorial.
HCA Healthcare acquired a chain of 40 Texas urgent care centers previously owned by Community Care Partners. The sites were rebranded as CareNow, with 18 folded under HCA’s Methodist Healthcare system and 14 under its St. David’s HealthCare. Financial terms were not disclosed.
MaineHealth’s plan to acquire York Hospital received state approval, clearing the way for an Oct. 1 close.
Salem Health secured regulatory approval from Oregon’s Attorney General for its merger with Santiam Hospital, the last barrier to the $61 million deal for the 40-bed hospital. The combination has received emergency exemption from other state review requirements.
Bon Secours Mercy Health shared plans to acquire Fauquier Health, a 97-bed acute-care hospital in Virginia, from Lifepoint Health. Financial terms for the deal set to close this fall were not disclosed.
Wellstar Health System closed its acquisition of Mountain Lakes Medical Center, a 25-bed crucial access hospital in northeast Georgia. With the acquisition, Wellstar now operates a network of 12 hospitals.
Vandalia Health and Grafton City Hospital held a signing ceremony on Aug. 31 for their merger, which went into effect the following day. The facility has been renamed Vandalia Health Grafton Hospital, growing the West Virginia facility to 17 hospitals.
Kaleida Health has become the sole member and passive parent of Brooks-TLC Hospital and Bertrand Chaffee Hospital, both in New York. The arrangement sees Kaleida offering administrative, financial and strategic support, though the hospitals are maintaining control and oversight of daily operations and most services.
University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences affiliated Jefferson Regional, making the university’s board of trustees the corporate member of Jefferson Regional’s parent corporation.
Ascension’s $3.9 billion AmSurg purchase, which closed in June, netted a finalized consent order with the Federal Trade Commission regarding terms to divest certain locations on antitrust concerns.
WVU Health System signed a definitive affiliation agreement to add Fulton County Medical Center, in Pennsylvania, to its organization. The 21-bed critical access hospital will receive up to $17 million of investment over the next seven years under the deal.
Payer
Providence revealed that negotiations with a payer to sell off its Providence Health Plan Medicare Advantage business didn’t pan out. The health system-affiliated insurer is currently working to wind down its operations.
Tech
Universal Health Services closed its $835 million, debt-financed acquisition of virtual behavioral care provider Talkspace. The deal sees Talkspace retain its brand, structure and broader strategic direction under the acute and behavioral care chain, though executives from both sides have pointed to opportunities to refer patients bidirectionally as the deal’s major benefit.
Weave, an AI patient engagement and payment technology platform serving healthcare practices, entered a definitive agreement to be acquired by Francisco Partners for about $650 million, a 34% premium over its closing stock price upon the deal’s announcement. The deal will take the company private under the investment firm and is expected to close in the fourth quarter.
Sword Health, a virtual physical therapy platform, plans to acquire digital mental health company Headspace in an all-cash deal, per a Massachusetts regulatory filing. No price was given for the deal targeting a Sept. 14 close, though reporting by anonymous sources outlines a $200 million to $300 million window—a substantial devaluation for Headspace.
iRhythm will acquire cardiac remote patient monitoring company VitalConnect for $287.5 million, largely in cash with $50 million paid in iRhythm stock. The digital health deal will expand iRhythm’s addressable market.
Hinge Health, a digital musculoskeletal and migraine care platform, completed its acquisition of Cylinder Health for $105 million in cash on Sept. 3. Hinge Health announced plans to acquire the virtual gastrointestinal care management startup in early August. The acquisition accelerates Hinge Health’s entry into one of healthcare’s largest underserved categories, executives said, and the company plans to launch an integrated gastrointestinal care program in 2027.
Cityblock Health plans to acquire Homeward Health in an all-stock deal to expand its Medicaid and dual-eligible care business deeper into rural markets. Other financial terms were not disclosed. Combined, the two companies will serve nearly 250,000 people and are positioned to reach the 120 million people receiving government-funded healthcare in the U.S.
R1, a revenue cycle management technology company, notched a definitive agreement to acquired AI-powered prior authorization automation company Humata Health. R1 plans to connect Humata’s technology to its Phare OS, and the Humata team will enhance R1’s agentic AI development team (the R37 innovation lab). Financial terms were not disclosed, and the deal is expected to close at the end of the third quarter.
DocGo, a mobile health and medical transport company, entered a definitive agreement to acquire virtual care provider Hicuity Health. The arrangement sees DocGo assuming about $52 million of Hicuity’s outstanding debt.
Unite Us, a health and community-based care technology company, acquired Vircho Health, which offers finance and performance tools to community care networks and programs. Financial terms were not disclosed, though Unite Us noted that both companies' tools are already being used side by side in North Carolina.
Berry Street, a nutrition care company, has merged with India-based Healthify to form what executives call the largest insurance-covered AI metabolic health platform in the U.S. Financial details were not disclosed.
Savista, a revenue cycle management vendor, acquired non-acute ambulatory revenue cycle management services company ABW Medical. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Globus Medical, a musculoskeletal health technology company, acquired Higgs Boson Health. The latter was incubated out of Duke University and focuses on patient engagement offerings for health systems, pharma and medical device manufacturers. Terms were not disclosed.
WellStack, a health data analytics company, acquired predictive analytics and decision support company DeLorean AI for an undisclosed sum. The combination will allow WellStack’s customers to aggregate data for insights and impact measurement.
Switchboard Health, an AI-driven specialty care navigation platform, announced the acquisition of virtual orthopedics and musculoskeletal management provider Livara Health. Financial details were not disclosed.
Miscellaneous
KKR & Co. is selling USI Insurance Services, whose insurance brokerage and consulting platform includes a healthcare practice covering issues like malpractice and cyber liability for providers, to Aon Plc for about $17 billion.