Effective June 15, Lebanon, N.H.-based Dartmouth Heath will no longer provide labor and delivery services at Catholic Medical Center in Manchester, N.H., ending a long-standing contract between the two.
The move comes as Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Healthcare seeks to purchase Catholic Medical Center for $110 million.
"This will end a two-decade-long partnership with great providers from Dartmouth who have staffed our Mom's Place, staffed our special care nursery and NICU, and have helped deliver about 1,000 babies a year," Alex Walker, president and CEO of Catholic Medical Center, said during an Oct. 23 public hearing regarding the proposed sale, according to The Boston Globe.
CMC officials told the news outlet the change doesn't affect its other contracts with Dartmouth Health, which include ICU care services.
During the hearing, Mr. Walker emphasized the hospital intends to maintain labor and delivery services, though he didn't share details on how that might work. HCA has said it intends to continue providing labor and delivery services at CMC if the sale goes through. The New Hampshire Attorney General's Office plans to make a decision on the deal by Dec. 24.
Meanwhile, Dartmouth Health plans to relocate labor and delivery services to Elliot Hospital's Birthing Center, which is about three miles away from CMC.
"This transition of services offers not only an important opportunity to expand and strengthen existing Dartmouth Health services, but it provides us with an opportunity to expand our OB-GYN residency program to train more future physicians who specialize in women's care, and all while maintaining high quality care for our patients and the community of Manchester," Maria Padin, MD, chief medical officer for Dartmouth Hitchcock Clinics in Southern New Hampshire, said in an Oct. 23 statement to Becker's.
"At today's public information session hosted by the Office of Charitable Trusts, we were pleased to hear the commitment by HCA to continue providing labor and delivery services at CMC," Dr. Padin said.