The short answers to those questions are 1) Yes, there will be a new name, but they don’t know what it will be just yet, and 2) There are no plans for a new combined headquarters.
Dallas’s Baylor Scott and White and Houston-based Memorial Hermann have signed a letter of intent to merge, combining the two health networks into one system that will span Dallas, Houston, Austin, and Temple, accounting for $14.4 billion in revenue, according to Modern Healthcare.
At a press conference Monday afternoon, four of the leaders from the two systems discussed the merger and answered questions from the media. Baylor Scott and White CEO Jim Hinton and board chair Ross McKnight were joined by Memorial Hermann President and CEO Chuck Stokes and board chair Deborah Cannon.
McKnight discussed the new name, but said it would be sorted out in the negotiations. He did note that the current hospitals would not lose their Baylor Scott and White or Memorial Hermann branding. The new hospitals would be called something close to Baylor Hospital, a division of (new name), he said.
The two healthcare systems are contiguous but don’t overlap, and Cannon said that they don’t anticipate closing any facilities. In fact, she says there are 5,000 openings across all their facilities, and they are looking to grow. According to ECN, the merger makes the new company one of the five largest nonprofit health systems in the country.
When asked if the merger would result in a new headquarters, they repeated the answer given in the press release, that there will be executive support staff in Dallas, Houston, Austin, and Temple.
Learn more about details of the merger and the announcement here.
