Oklahoma City-based OU Medicine will assume management and ownership of all hospitals affiliated with the university this fall, according to NewsOK.
OU Medicine is a nonprofit venture formed through a partnership between the University of Oklahoma in Norman and the Oklahoma City-based University Hospitals Authority and Trust. The university's board of reagents approved the agreement during a special meeting Aug. 11.
Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Healthcare, which previously held the contracts to operate and manage the university-affiliated hospitals, including Oklahoma University Medical Center in Oklahoma City and OU Medical Center Edmond (Okla.), agreed to transfer ownership of the hospitals to the University Hospitals Authority Trust in October 2016 for $750 million.
HCA will continue to manage the hospitals until the transaction is completed, which officials expect to occur Nov. 1. The transaction must also be approved by the University Hospitals Authority and Trust, as well as the state attorney general and the Oklahoma Contingency Review Board, among other entities.
Jason Sanders, MD, senior vice president and provost of the OU Health Sciences Center, told NewsOK the transition to a nonprofit model will "put more money back into both patient care and clinical training for medical students."
OU Medical System previously planned to affiliate with St. Louis-based SSM Health. However the agreement fell apart in March.