John Muir Health seeks to become sole owner of San Ramon Regional Medical Center by years end

One of the East Bay’s largest not-for-profit healthcare organization aims to acquire San Ramon Regional Medical Center sometime within the next year.

John Muir Health, a multibillion-dollar community health system in Contra Costa County, announced Thursday that it has entered into a definitive agreement with the San Ramon medical center’s owner, Tenent Healthcare, to acquire sole ownership, pending a review by the Federal Trade Commission.

“We believe that this acquisition is good for our community, caregivers, patients, and John Muir Health and San Ramon Regional Medical Center,” said Mike Thomas, president and CEO of John Muir Health.

The healthcare organization — serving patients in Contra Costa, eastern Alameda, and southern Solano counties — already operates two of the largest medical centers in Contra Costa County: John Muir Health Walnut Creek Medical Center and John Muir Health Concord Medical Center.

The Walnut Creek location serves as Contra Costa County’s only designated trauma center.

In 2013, John Muir Health invested nearly $100 million to acquire a 49% interest of San Ramon Regional Medical Center in San Ramon to expand its services throughout the Tri-Valley.

The new agreement allows John Muir Health to acquire the remaining ownership for $142.5 million.

San Ramon Regional Medical Center first opened its doors in 1990 and is a 123-bed acute care hospital that provides comprehensive inpatient, outpatient, and emergency care.

Current patients of both San Ramon Regional and John Muir Health should not expect their current medical care to be affected by the purchase, hospital spokesperson Ben Drew told this news organization.

About two-thirds of doctors who are at San Ramon Regional Medical Center already have privileges at other John Muir Health hospitals.

“It will really be a fairly seamless integration, and there would be no need for anybody to change their doctors,” Drew said. “The transition will give more access to services in the Tri-Valley and then up through our hospitals in Walnut Creek and Concord.”

If all goes well, some immediate improvements John Muir intends to implement include investing in facilities and enhanced services to the medical center, extending non-profit community benefits programs to the San Ramon area, and cutting down on duplicative administrative expenses, according to its press release.

“We view this as a long-term opportunity to expand our services and better serve the growing populations in the San Ramon Valley and Tri-Valley. By allocating fixed costs over a broader scope of operations, we will also improve cost-effectiveness for patients and health plans,” Thomas said.