Beaumont Health System, Botsford Health Care, and Oakwood Healthcare will combine operations into a new $3.8 billion health care organization called Beaumont Health, following unanimous approval by their boards today.
The name of the not-for-profit system was chosen to demonstrate the new system’s focus on health and wellness and is based on independent market research showing the regional and national strength of the respective practices.
“While Botsford and Oakwood have outstanding names and brands in their primary communities, we chose the name ‘Beaumont Health’ because of its recognition and strength throughout all of southeast Michigan and on a national level,” says John Lewis, chairman of the Oakwood board and future chair of the Beaumont Health board.
“The new health system will be a national model, and the name paves the way for an even stronger national voice in the future of health care delivery,” Lewis says. “And the word ‘Health’ represents our combined goal of improving the health of individuals, families, and employers in the communities we serve.”
The three organizations announced a letter of intent on March 21 to integrate their combined eight hospitals and 153 patient care sites into a new comprehensive, collaborative health system focused on advancing quality and access to care throughout the region.
A single board and executive leadership structure will govern the new health system, with representation from the three organizations.
“The work to integrate these three great organizations, while challenging, is progressing well,” says Chief Transition Executive Brian Connolly. “We see the signs that we are indeed creating the health care system of the future — a system in which population health can truly be impacted in a very positive way while increasing quality and value for every family we are fortunate to serve.”
The merger still requires state and federal regulatory approval. Pending government review, the organizations expect to close on the transaction in the fall.
The new Beaumont Health organization will have eight hospitals with 3,337 beds, 153 outpatient sites, 5,000 physicians, 33,093 employees, and 3,500 volunteers. The hospitals include Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak; Beaumont Hospital, Troy; Beaumont Hospital, Grosse Pointe; Botsford Hospital, Farmington Hills; Oakwood Hospital-Dearborn; Oakwood Hospital-Southshore; Oakwood Hospital-Taylor; and Oakwood Hospital-Wayne.
The names of the eight individual hospitals will be linked with the Beaumont Health name and brand in a manner to be determined over time.
“We recognize and respect the community’s connection with these legacy names and their strength within their markets. So, we will take our time and seek inside and outside counsel in developing a plan for communicating the new brand,” Michalski says.
A website for the new health system, beaumonthealth.org, has been created to keep the community informed of progress.
