Salt Lake City-based Intermountain Healthcare and Sioux Falls, S.D.-based Sanford Health have signed a letter of intent to merge.
The boards of both nonprofit organizations unanimously approved on Oct. 23 a resolution to support moving forward with the due diligence process. Pending regulatory and state approvals, the merger is expected to close in 2021.
"We're hoping that the actions taken … just 72 hours ago will culminate in a combined organization next summer," Kelby Krabbenhoft, president and CEO of Sanford Health, said during an Oct. 26 news conference.
Existing boards of trustees from both systems will join to form a combined board, and Gail Miller, chair of the Intermountain board, will serve as board chair of the merged organization.
Marc Harrison, MD, president and CEO of Intermountain, will serve as president and CEO of the combined system, which will operate 70 hospitals and employ more than 89,000 people. Mr. Krabbenhoft will serve as president emeritus.
"These are two great organizations with strong histories that are economically and clinically very strong," Dr. Harrison said during the news conference. "This is something that should happen for the future of American healthcare."
Intermountain will be the parent company of the combined organization, and the merged system will be headquartered in Salt Lake City.