University Health Care System in Augusta, Ga., is closing in on a definitive agreement to join Piedmont Healthcare in Atlanta, University Health CEO Jim Davis said, The Augusta Chronicle reported Sept. 2.
"We have another draft that is very, very close to what we want," Mr. Davis said, according to the report. University's board could receive the 70-page agreement before a meeting slated for Sept. 9.
If the board approves the merger, it still would need to be reviewed by the Georgia attorney general's office. That approval could take three to four months.
University Health, which has three hospitals, signed a letter of intent to join Piedmont in May.