Two Chicago healthcare institutions are reportedly in negotiations for a possible merger.
The Rush System for Health—an academic health system that includes Rush University Medical Center—and Swedish Covenant Health are eyeing a deal, Crain's Chicago Business reported.
Rush is a three-hospital system and has about 7,000 employees. Swedish Covenant is an independent, 312-bed teaching hospital with about 2,500 employees. It also has Galter LifeCenter, a medical fitness center, as well as a 150-member physicians group and a managed care organization.
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Spokespeople for both organizations declined to comment for the Crain's story and have not yet responded to a request for comment from FierceHealthcare.
The potential deal would be further evidence the healthcare industry hasn’t lost interest in consolidation even as the value of deals has taken a dip.
Experts have raised concerns about the impact on healthcare costs for patients from loss in competition.
A December report suggested the healthcare market has already experienced so much consolidation that policymakers should take steps to ease pricing concerns in the markets that are already concentrated instead of focusing solely on potential future deals.