Lifespan and Care New England have progressed to the next step in the regulatory review process.
On Friday, Oct. 1, Lifespan and Care New England submitted a revised Hospital Conversions Act (HCA) application addressing follow-up questions from the initial April 26, 2021 HCA filing submitted to the Rhode Island Department of Health and the Rhode Island Office of Attorney General. The Application seeks approval of the proposed merger of Lifespan and Care New England.
On April 14, Lifespan and Care New England submitted their Hart-Scott-Rodino Act antitrust filing to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). October 1, also marked the culmination of several submissions over the past several weeks responding to the FTC’s most pressing questions. We anticipate completing responses to the FTC’s information request over the coming weeks, having submitted many thousands of pages of information to the FTC to date, with more to come.
If approved, the merger of Lifespan and Care New England will provide Rhode Islanders with access to a full continuum of quality care from birth to end of life and an opportunity to receive the highest quality specialty care without traveling out of state. By coming together, Lifespan and Care England, combined with their robust academic affiliation with Brown University, will create the state’s first and only truly integrated academic health system that will fundamentally transform how health care is delivered in Rhode Island. This will be achieved by improving both access to health care services and the quality of care across settings, reducing health disparities, and creating a world-class hub of research and innovation in Rhode Island.
The merged entity will be better positioned to withstand the challenging financial environment and anticipated additional challenges as a result of the healthcare workforce shortage and the pandemic. A stronger financial footing through greater economies of scale and efficiency will allow us to focus on mission, including continuing to invest in our communities to improve health status and healthcare access.
“Rhode Islanders want and deserve high quality care at an affordable cost,” said Timothy J. Babineau, MD, president and CEO of Lifespan. “Our first priority is to ensure that the affiliation moves forward in a way that improves healthcare in our state for patients, creating a system meeting the needs of all in our community, across race, language, and income. The new entity will enhance our ability to keep patients in Rhode Island for their care and continue to attract federal research dollars into Rhode Island in an even more competitive environment.”
Dr. James Fanale, President and CEO of Care New England, stated, “We are pleased that the process has continued on track and look forward to continued dialogue with our regulators to ensure that they have all the necessary information to review and ultimately approve the proposed transaction. With everything going on in the world and in healthcare today, we must create the most resilient system as we can. ”