MultiCare Health System will acquire Yakima Valley Memorial Hospital under an agreement signed Friday, The Seattle Times reports.
Memorial will become a wholly owned subsidiary of MultiCare in early 2023, when its name will change to MultiCare Yakima Memorial Hospital.
Under the agreement, MultiCare will invest in new programs, implement an integrated electronic health record, strengthen the hospital’s role as a regional health care hub and “help provide a sustainable future for Yakima’s only hospital,” a news release said.
The two organizations signed a letter of intent to explore a merger in May. Memorial and MultiCare have a shared goal of retaining and expanding local access to health care and improving quality of care, the news release stated.
“Our relationship with Memorial began in 2021 when we partnered to expand oncology services in the Yakima Valley region,” MultiCare CEO Bill Robertson said in the release. “This agreement is a natural evolution of that partnership and aligns with our organizations’ mutual commitment to keeping the care Central Washington communities need in those communities.”
The organizations said there should be no disruptions to patient care during the changes. Financial details were not disclosed.
“This agreement will strengthen our ability to provide robust primary and specialty care services to this community for decades to come,” Memorial CEO Carole Peet said.
Memorial has a 226-bed hospital in Yakima, primary care practices and specialty care, including cardiac care, among other services. Read more.
