Geisinger merger decision pending

It may be a few more months before the state attorney general makes a final decision about whether the merger between the University's Hershey Medical Center and the Geisinger Health System will continue.

The state attorney general's office has extended its review of the merger indefinitely to allow the newly created Penn State Geisinger Health System to continue negotiations with other health plans in central Pennsylvania.

"I want to make sure that the people of central Pennsylvania can obtain quality health care," said Attorney General Mike Fisher in a news release from the Office of the Attorney General. "This extension will give the parties additional time to reach agreements to provide health services to Pennsylvania consumers."

The review has been in effect since July 1, the first day of the merger, to ensure that the new health system will not monopolize health care in central Pennsylvania. At the end of the review, the attorney general will either approve or disapprove the merger. No deadline has been set, according to the release.

Officials in the health system have been notified of the extension, according to the news release. Dr. C. McCollister Evarts, senior vice president for health affairs for the University, said the system is continuing to negotiate with other health plans and with the attorney general's office.

"We have answered all of the questions posed to us by the review," he said.

The extension was given to allow those negotiations to continue and to allow all health plans to have a chance to work with the new system, said Sean Connolly, press secretary for the attorney general.

"The attorney general acknowledges that there has been progress in the negotiations," Connolly said. "(The extension was given) with the hope that as many central Pennsylvanians as possible will be able to obtain quality health care."

In general, the merger is progressing well, especially considering the size of the two systems, Evarts said. Any problems that have occurred have been dealt with quickly, he added.

"We've created a very high quality health care system that creates access to a number of patients," he said. "When we have a problem, instead of (dwelling on it), we are saying 'how can we solve it?' "

According to an Associated Press article yesterday, the Penn State Geisinger Health System has lost $10.5 million in the past four months. The losses are unrelated to the merger and are a result of increasing costs of services and supplies and less reimbursement for services, Evarts said.