Loyola Medicine, Palos Health End Merger Talks

PALOS HEIGHTS, IL -- Loyola Medicine and Palos Health have called off merger talks after exploring the possibility of merging Palos Hospital and its affiliate organizations with Loyola's comprehensive regional health system. Both organizations noted that their existing partnerships will continue, and they will keep exploring other opportunities to bring more services to residents in the southwest suburbs.

The organizations signed a non-binding letter of intent in January to explore a possible merger. Loyola and Palos formed an academic clinical affiliation in 2015, and all current operations will remain in place. Palos and Loyola’s collaboration also includes several patient-care initiatives including a telestroke program, a Loyola-managed infusion center, and jointly owned ambulatory surgery and radiation oncology centers located at the Palos Health South Campus in Orland Park. Loyola's physicians will continue to staff those facilities.

Both organizations recently collaborated on an 83,000-square-foot expansion of the Palos Health South Campus in Orland Park, which opened last summer. An explanation was not given why the two organizations decided not to merge.

“Palos Health and Loyola Medicine remain committed to serving the healthcare needs of residents in the southwest suburbs of Chicago,” officials said in a news release.