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Attorney General Corbett Approves Agreement for Merger of Mercy and UPMC


WEBWIRE

Pittsburgh Mercy Health System (PMHS) and UPMC praised today’s consent decree announced by Pennsylvania Attorney General Tom Corbett as an important step toward preserving Pittsburgh’s last faith-based hospital. The Attorney General’s approval marks a significant milestone in completing the merger between Mercy and UPMC, which still requires completion of reviews by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Vatican before it is finalized.

The planned merger of Mercy and UPMC, announced in September, will save thousands of Pittsburgh jobs, allows Mercy Hospital to continue to provide much needed services to the community and sustain the charitable mission of the Sisters of Mercy. It also will guarantee the availability and accessibility of vitalclinical services, such as trauma and burn care, long provided by Mercy.

“We are pleased that the Attorney General has agreed that this merger is good for Mercy and good for the health care consumers of western Pennsylvania,” said John R. McGinley Jr., Esq., chairman of the PMHS Board of Trustees. “We remain hopeful that the FTC will soon complete its review and enable Mercy to continue as Pittsburgh’s only Catholic hospital.”

Sister Margaret Hannan, RSM, president of the Pittsburgh Regional Community of the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas, applauded the historic decision. “This transaction will help us to ensure the continuation and enhancement of our mission-driven, community-based programs devoted to serving the poor and theelderly of our community.”

The consent decree, a consensual agreement between the parties and the Attorney General, has been filed with the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania. Through the decree, the Attorney General has addressed his concerns about the merger’s potential impact on competition, while recognizingthe benefits of the transaction to the community

“This merger will allow us to preserve nearly 3,500 jobs, provide Mercy physicians with greater access to cutting-edge technology and facilities for their patients, and expand clinical programs that are important not only to the neighborhood around Mercy, but to western Pennsylvania as a whole. Mercy is an essential part of the health and economic well-being of this community,” said Elizabeth Concordia, senior vice president, UPMC, Academic & Community Hospitals, and president, UPMC Presbyterian Shadyside.

“A robust Mercy Hospital is also crucial to the economic revitalization of the Lower Hill and Uptown neighborhoods and is an important component of a thriving Downtown-to-Oakland corridor,” she added.

"This announcement can be greeted only with enthusiasm,” said BishopPaul J. Bradley, administrator of the Diocese of Pittsburgh. “We are onestep closer to realizing our goal of ensuring that the hospital will retain its Catholic identity and will continue to operate according to the ethicaland religious directives established by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.”

Under the terms of the merger agreement, UPMC will take ownership of Mercy Hospital and its associated physician organizations from the Pittsburgh Mercy Health System. The 535-bed facility will continue to operate as a Catholic hospital, under the canonical oversight of the Diocese of Pittsburgh.

When the transaction is completed, UPMC will assume responsibility for all liabilities and assets of Mercy Hospital, while donating approximately $30 million to the PMHS to support the mission of the Sisters of Mercy. With an additional $70 million that will be transferred to PMHS before the merger, the sisters will administer a $120 million fund for the benefit of the local community.



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