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More than three months after postponing a decision on whether to support WakeMed’s merger with Atrium Health, the Wake County Board of Commissioners will hold a hearing Monday to learn what the public thinks.
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The hearing will take place at 2 p.m. Aug. 17 in Room 2700 of the Wake County Justice Center in downtown Raleigh. People can sign up in advance to speak starting 9 a.m. Monday at boccomment.wake.gov/.
WakeMed announced plans to join Charlotte-based Atrium Health in early May, saying that becoming part of a larger nonprofit corporation would give WakeMed the capital it needs to update and expand its hospitals in Wake County.
But before the merger can proceed, WakeMed needs Wake commissioners to approve changes to the documents that allowed the county-owned Wake Medical Center to become a private nonprofit in 1997. Those changes were on the board’s agenda on May 4, but it opted to delay a decision to give WakeMed more time to answer questions.
No vote has been scheduled.
Opposition to the merger has been building through the summer. Last month, a coalition of community groups urged commissioners to block the deal, saying they think it would lead to higher healthcare costs, the potential loss of local control and less care for low-income or uninsured patients.
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WakeMed is asking commissioners to amend two documents: the agreement that transferred ownership of the hospital from the county to the nonprofit corporation and the “articles of incorporation” for the nonprofit.
The articles require that commissioners appoint eight of the 14-member WakeMed Board of Directors and that they live in the county. Those requirements would not change after a merger, though Atrium would appoint the other six members who would have the power to block any Wake appointment.
If commissioners approve the changes, the merger faces other regulatory hurdles. The Federal Trade Commission, along with the N.C. attorney general’s office, must agree the combination doesn’t violate state and federal antitrust laws that protect consumers from unfair business practices.
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