Health Central in Ocoee, Fla., the only independent hospital in the Orlando metropolitan area, has announced it will start negotiating with potential hospital system partners, according to an Orlando Sentinel report.
The 171-bed hospital's CEO Richard Irwin said in the report that the days of the independent hospital and independent physician "have come to a close."
The hospital has an "A" bond rating, despite having nearly 60 percent of its patients either on Medicare or Medicaid, which could make the health system attractive to potential partners, according to the report.
The potential merger follows several other recent ones in the Central Florida region. In July, Bert Fish Medical Center in New Smyrna Beach, Fla., merged with Adventist Health System, and Health Management Associates announced it will acquire Wuesthoff Health System, based in Rockledge, Fla.
Read the Orlando Sentinel report on Health Central.
The 171-bed hospital's CEO Richard Irwin said in the report that the days of the independent hospital and independent physician "have come to a close."
The hospital has an "A" bond rating, despite having nearly 60 percent of its patients either on Medicare or Medicaid, which could make the health system attractive to potential partners, according to the report.
The potential merger follows several other recent ones in the Central Florida region. In July, Bert Fish Medical Center in New Smyrna Beach, Fla., merged with Adventist Health System, and Health Management Associates announced it will acquire Wuesthoff Health System, based in Rockledge, Fla.
Read the Orlando Sentinel report on Health Central.