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Cone Health Plans Merger With Virginia-Based Health Care System

Moses Cone Hospital in Greensboro, North Carolina. Image courtesy of Cone Health.

Cone Health is planning to merge with Sentara, a larger health care system based in Norfolk, Virginia.

The potential merger has been in the works for over a year. The combined annual revenue for the new organization is expected to be around $11.5 billion.

Leaders with Cone Heath and Sentara say it would allow both systems to expand access to health care with more clinics and offices. They would also invest in digital platforms to grow virtual services and programs.

The corporate headquarters would be in Norfolk, and Sentara Healthcare CEO Howard Kern would lead the organization. Greensboro would serve as a regional headquarters for the Cone Health division and CEO Terry Akin would remain there.

Sentara currently operates one North Carolina hospital in Elizabeth City. 

Akin says combining forces also opens up opportunities in the health plan market.

“Sentara has an insurance plan known as Optima. We also are in the insurance business in Medicare Advantage, HealthTeam Advantage, and combining those we're going to be offering some interesting opportunities to align incentives, and for the public, more choice in terms of health care and health insurance,” says Akin.

A new name for the combined organization hasn't been determined.

Cone Health employs around 13,000 people and Sentara employs around 30,000.

As for any job cuts or downsizing related to a merger, Akin says nothing's been decided right now and more jobs could come from the growth opportunities. He says both organizations have a commitment and history of avoiding layoffs and any changes on that end would first be addressed through attrition and reassignments.

The merger would have to be approved by state and federal regulators and would take two to three years to complete.

*Follow WFDD's Keri Brown on Twitter @kerib_news

Keri Brown is a multi-award winning reporter and host at 88.5 WFDD. She has been honored with two regional Edward R. Murrow awards for her stories about coal ash, and was named the 2015 radio reporter of the year by the Radio Television Digital News Association of the Carolinas (RTDNAC).Although she covers a variety of topics, her beats are environmental and education reporting.Keri comes to the Triad from West Virginia Public Broadcasting, where she served as the Chief Bureau Reporter for the Northern Panhandle. She produced stories for the state's Public Television and Radio programs and was honored by the West Virginia Associated Press Broadcasters Association for her feature and enterprise reporting.She also served as an adjunct instructor at Wheeling Jesuit University and Bethany College in West Virginia. She worked with the Center for Educational Technologies in Wheeling, WV, and other NASA centers across the country to develop several stories about the use of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) concepts in the classroom.Keri's journalism career began at WTRF-TV 7 in Wheeling. She worked in several roles at the station, including the head assignment editor. She also was a field producer and assignment manager at WPGH-TV Fox 53 in Pittsburgh.Keri is a graduate of Ohio University. When she's not in the studio or working on a story, she enjoys watching college football with her family, cooking, and traveling.Keri is always looking for another great story idea, so please share them with her. You can follow her on Twitter @kerib_news.

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