Community Health Systems Announces Definitive Agreement to Acquire York, Pennsylvania Hospital

Published on Tuesday, 24 January 2012 16:38 Written by TradersHuddle Staff

FRANKLIN, Tenn.-( Business Wire )-

Community Health Systems, Inc. (NYSE: CYH) announced today that subsidiaries of the Company have executed a definitive agreement to acquire substantially all of the assets of Memorial Health Systems in York, Pennsylvania. Located in one of the fastest growing counties in Pennsylvania, the health system includes 100-bed Memorial Hospital, the Surgical Center of York, and other outpatient and ancillary services. The agreement includes a commitment to construct a replacement hospital within five years of the closing date. The transaction is subject to customary federal and state regulatory approvals, including review and approval by the Attorney General of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Commenting on today’s announcement, Wayne T. Smith, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Community Health Systems, Inc., said, “As we continue to expand our operations across Pennsylvania, we are excited about the prospect of applying our capital and management resources to help serve this growing community. The dedicated medical staff and employees at Memorial Hospital are successfully providing patients with high-quality healthcare services in a competitive environment. We look forward to partnering with them to fulfill their vision for a new and modern hospital facility that will advance clinical quality and the patient experience.”

When the transaction is complete, Memorial Hospital will become the seventeenth Community Health Systems, Inc. affiliated hospital in Pennsylvania.

Located in the Nashville, Tennessee, suburb of Franklin, Community Health Systems, Inc. is one of the largest publicly-traded hospital companies in the United States and a leading operator of general acute care hospitals in non-urban and mid-size markets throughout the country. Through its subsidiaries, the Company currently owns, leases or operates 133 hospitals in 29 states with an aggregate of approximately 20,000 licensed beds. Its hospitals offer a broad range of inpatient and surgical services, outpatient treatment and skilled nursing care. In addition, through its subsidiary, Quorum Health Resources, LLC, the Company provides management and consulting services to non-affiliated general acute care hospitals located throughout the United States. Shares in Community Health Systems, Inc. are traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “CYH.”

Forward-Looking Statements

Statements contained in this news release regarding expected operating results, acquisition transactions or divestitures and other events are forward-looking statements that involve risk and uncertainties. Actual future events or results may differ materially from these statements. Readers are referred to the documents filed by Community Health Systems, Inc. with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Company’s annual report on Form 10-K, current reports on Form 8-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. These filings identify important risk factors and other uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statements, or to make any other forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Community Health Systems, Inc.Investor Contact:W. Larry Cash, 615-465-7000Executive Vice President and Chief Financial OfficerorMedia Contact:Tomi Galin, 615-628-6607Vice President, Corporate Communications