The Memorial Health Board of Directors & the Chatham County Hospital Authority announced the Georgia Attorney General’s Office has accepted its filing for HCA Healthcare to acquire Memorial’s assets and continue its core services to area residents.

In April, the Memorial Health Board, the CCHA board and HCA Healthcare signed a letter of intent for acquisition following a significant search by the boards for a strategic healthcare partner to assume and stabilize the hospital’s operations.

“Our continued discussions this summer with HCA have shown us their deep commitment to sustaining critical healthcare services for this community, investing in the future of these programs and supporting this extraordinary Memorial Health team,” said J. Curtis Lewis, III, chairman of the Memorial Health Board.

“Over the past several years, we have sought a partner for our community who understood the critical need to sustain world-class care at this elite teaching hospital. We are now confident that HCA is that partner and we are taking every step to move this process forward quickly so that our team and our community can be assured that Memorial Health will thrive long into the future,” said Frank Rossiter Jr., M.D., chairman of the Chatham County Hospital Authority.

Within the next 90 days, Georgia’s Office of the Attorney General will conduct a Public Hearing in Savannah regarding the acquisition of Memorial Health by HCA Healthcare. The transaction would need to meet certain regulatory requirements and receive a favorable approval from the Attorney General’s Office before it may be completed. Once completed, the hospital and its outpatient clinics and facilities will become full members of HCA’s South Atlantic Division.

“We look forward to welcoming the Memorial Health team to the HCA South Atlantic family,” said Hugh Tappan, president of HCA’s South Atlantic Division. “Throughout our discussions, we have been deeply impressed with the high quality health care delivered by the physicians and employees at Memorial and by the compassion and commitment that is clearly evident in every program and service offered.”

Memorial University Medical Center is a two-state healthcare organization serving a 35-county area in southeast Georgia and southern South Carolina. The system includes its flagship hospital, a 612-bed academic medical center; Memorial primary and specialty care physician networks; a major medical education program; business and industry services; and NurseOne, a 24-hour call center.