HCA to buy five hospitals in Utah from Steward Health Care

HCA Healthcare will buy five hospitals in Utah owned by Steward Health Care, adding to HCA’s presence in the mountain states.

HCA currently owns 8 hospitals in Utah. This purchase allows the for-profit hospital giant to compete with the state’s largest provider, Intermountain Healthcare, which owns 24 hospitals in the state, including a virtual hospital. Not-for-profit Intermountain last week announced it was merging with SCL Health to form an $11 billion system with 33 hospitals.

“Utah is one of the fastest-growing areas in the country, and the state’s need for healthcare continues to increase,” said HCA CEO Sam Hazen in a press release. “We believe the addition of these facilities will help us improve healthcare network options for patients and enable investment in services to meet increasing demand for healthcare.”

HCA also has two hospitals in Idaho.

Dallas-based Steward Health Care operates 44 hospitals in the U.S. and abroad. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed. The deal is subject to the usual regulatory approvals.

“We are very proud of Steward’s significant contributions to the quality and efficiency of operations in these facilities,” said Steward Health Care Chairman and CEO Ralph de la Torre in the press release. “We are confident that the combination with HCA Healthcare will enable the achievement of cost savings and further improved quality of care for patients in Utah. For Steward, this transaction frees up additional capital to more deliberately invest in its accountable care model by reinvesting in risk-based opportunities and healthcare expansion.”

HCA is based in Nashville and includes 187 hospitals and approximately 2,000 ambulatory sites of care.

Earlier this month, Macquarie Infrastructure Partners V announced it was purchasing 50% of the real estate assets of eight Steward hospitals in Massachusetts.