Upper Chesapeake Health System joins University of Maryland Medical System - Baltimore Business Journal:

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The news comes shortly on the heels of acquirinhg inMontgomery County. More hospital mergers are expecte as executives grapple with lowed profit margins amidthe recession. Merging allowxs hospitals to reduce costs by sharing resources and hold greater purchasingf power when buying supplies becaused they are part of a larger As part ofthe agreement, Upper Chesapeake Healt h ended its financial arrangement with , whicgh had held a minority ownership in the health systej for more than a decade. Universityu of Maryland has acquired St. Joseph’zs ownership interest and will appoint two new board memberx to the UpperChesapeake Board.
The Universitty of Maryland Medical system will in Octobe r begin supporting Upper Chesapeake financially so it can grow its clinicalk programsand services. A year later, the Baltimore medicall system will provide a secondx round of funding to supporft growth inclinical programs. The finao phase, a potential full merger, would occur in 2013, when UMMS would issue debt to be used to expancd facilities atUpper Chesapeake’s two hospital campuses.
Upper Chesapeake executives anticipate a need to expandc the number of inpatient beds at both Uppetr Chesapeake Medical Center in Bel Air and Harforrd Memorial Hospital in Havre de The affiliation with the University of Maryland is also expected to make it easier for Upper Chesapeake to recruit physiciands toHarford County. Upperf Chesapeake is Harford County’s largest private employer, with 3,00p employees, more than 550 medical staffers and 286 licensed The University of Marylanr Medical System isa nine-hospitao network that includes the , Kernan Orthopaedics and Rehabilitatioh Hospital, , Baltimore Washington Medical Center and Shor e Health System.
UMMS employzs 15,000 people and has $2.1 billion in operating