UCSF-STANFORD: Regents OK Merger Dissolution
As expected, the UC Board of Regents voted yesterday to dissolve the hospital merger between UCSF and Stanford -- the last formal step needed to unwind the troubled two-year-old joint venture, the Los Angeles Times reports (Weiss, 11/19). The uncoupling will not come right away; the complexities of untangling operations and finances in the $1.5 billion venture are such that the universities do not expect to resume separate management and fiscal responsibility of their hospitals until March 1 at the earliest. Board of Regents Chair John Davies said, "There is sadness that we have reached this point" (Krieger, San Jose Mercury News, 11/19). While officials would not speculate on the costs of dissolution, UCSF Vice Chancellor Dr. Lee Goldman said, "Have you ever seen a divorce that was cheaper than the wedding?" (Los Angeles Times, 11/19). Meanwhile, San Francisco political leaders are trying to come up with a $25 million bailout package to keep Mt. Zion Hospital open. The UCSF hospital has been hemorrhaging $4 million a month and is slated to be converted to an ambulatory care center (Russell, San Francisco Chronicle, 11/17).
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