Carbondale, Ill.-based Southern Illinois Healthcare and Harrisburg (Ill.) Medical Center have signed a letter of intent to merge, according to The Southern Illinoisan.
If the two nonprofit organizations close the deal, it would create a four-hospital system serving a 16-county region. Harrisburg Medical Center would join Southern Illinois Healthcare's three hospitals: Memorial Hospital of Carbondale, Herrin (Ill.) Hospital, and St. Joseph Memorial Hospital in Murphysboro, Ill.
The organizations said they began discussions about a potential merger in January 2020.