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Two Wake County commissioners told The News & Observer Sunday that they will not support the WakeMed-Atrium merger when it comes to a vote on Monday.
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Commissioners Vickie Adamson and Tara Waters — two of seven on the board of commissioners — said Sunday night they will vote against it.
Adamson told The News & Observer she is concerned about healthcare costs for residents increasing if the merger goes through.
“I received the new documents on Thursday night at the same time as the public and the media,” she said in a statement. “These are complicated legal documents that require time to review and discuss together as a County Commission, and for us to engage with questions from the public.”
The timeline between Thursday and the 2 p.m. Monday vote doesn’t allow for that, she said.
The merger deal was altered from the original proposal.
The new deal language would nearly double WakeMed’s indigent care commitment for people who have trouble paying, would put stronger language around Atrium’s pledge to invest $2 billion in capital hospital improvements, would loosen some of Atrium’s control over WakeMed’s board of directors and ,would restrict certain tactics in medical debt collection.
“I spoke out in May because the process felt rushed and undemocratic, and I feel the same about where we stand today,” Adamson said.
In May, the deal was announced on a Friday, with commissioners set to approve the parts of the merger they have control over the following Monday. They would have voted on it as a consent agenda item, which is a list of items considered noncontroversial and voted on all at once.
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Waters said in an interview Sunday night that “I’m not comfortable moving forward with a decision of this magnitude on this timeline.”
She said she hadn’t thought yet about delaying the vote on the merger, but added, “I won’t vote in a matter that moves this forward, there are too many unknowns.”
Adamson said she would not move for a delay in the vote.
Wake County Board of Commissioners Chair Don Mial has previously stated his support for the deal publicly, but in more recent months has not responded to The N&O’s questions about the deal. Commissioners are set to have media availability after their meeting Monday.
Adamson took a public position on the same day that Gov. Josh Stein said he won’t stand in the way of the merger.
The N&O attempted to reach every commissioner Sunday, with Adamson, Waters and Commissioner Shinica Thomas responding.
Thomas said she would comment after the meeting.
The Wake County Democratic Party released a statement Sunday opposing the merger moving forward at this time.
Advocacy group The Patients Union also opposes the merger, with the group’s organizing director Rob Stephens calling the process around it “undemocratic.”
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This story was originally published September 20, 2026 at 8:04 PM.