Another community hospital in Iowa might transition to being a for-profit business, making it the second for-profit hospital in the state, according to The Des Moines Register.
The Marshalltown, Iowa-based hospital, which recently changed its name to Central Iowa Healthcare, it would be managed by Plano, Texas-based LHP Hospital Group. Ames, Iowa-based Mary Greeley Medical Center would also be a partner in the potential deal.
The three groups have signed a 90-day, nonbinding letter of intent. They're still discussing financial details of the deal.
Central Iowa Healthcare, which operates facilities in the Iowa cities of Marshalltown, Conrad, State Center and Toledo, has been losing money for years. Its losses amounted to $3.8 million in 2013 and $1.8 million in 2014, and CEO John Hughes said they've only continued since then.
"Healthcare systems across the country, especially independent hospitals like ours, are faced with a lot of challenges," Mr. Hughes said, according to the report. "The world is changing rapidly — reimbursement, technology, capital, recruitment — and we feel that aligning with the right partner is the decision we need to make."
Mary Greeley CEO Brian Dieter said his hospital doesn't plan on fully becoming a for-profit business but that its role in this deal could better its position in the market. "As the world changes, we would probably do better with more friends than fewer," he said, according to the report.
The only other for-profit healthcare business in the state is Ottumwa (Iowa) Regional Health Center.