Local business and community leaders have expressed their support for Tacoma, Wash.-based MultiCare Health System's $425 million purchase of Spokane, Wash.-based Rockwood Health System by the end of June, according to The Spokesman-Review.
The state department of health said the agency has received 23 public comments on the proposed transaction, along with letters from the city of Spokane, Spokane Valley and local businesses.
Local organizations that support the acquisition include SEIU Healthcare 1199NW, a union representing 28,000 nurses and healthcare workers across the state. Renton, Wash.-based Providence Health & Services, the largest health system in the area, said it maintains a "neutral" stance on the sale, stating it hopes regulators will require MultiCare to provide charity care to low-income and uninsured patients, according to the report.
MultiCare officials reportedly said the system agreed to the statewide voluntary pledge to provide a minimum level of charity care.
Officials also said all employees at Rockwood Health System's two hospitals —388-bed Deaconess Hospital in Spokane and 123-bed Valley Hospital in Spokane Valley, Wash. — will maintain their positions as long as they are in good standing at the time of the sale, which officials expect to close by the end of June.