RALEIGH, N.C. — WakeMed, one of the state’s smallest hospital systems, is seeking to merge with Atrium Health, one of the country’s largest healthcare providers.
The proposed merger requires approval from county commissioners. Critics have raised concerns that combining the systems will lead to higher healthcare costs.
According to the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF), “cross-market” combinations—where hospital systems in different markets form a larger system—are typically associated with price increases ranging from 6% to 17%.
A similar dynamic played out in North Carolina in 2020 when Atrium Health combined with Wake Forest Baptist in Winston-Salem. Data from Brown University’s Center for Advancing Health Policy Through Research shows that from 2020 to 2024, the average price of inpatient care for commercially insured patients at Wake Forest Baptist rose 28%. That same report found that across other North Carolina hospitals during the same period, the average increase was 20%.
To get clarity, WRAL invited WakeMed CEO Donald Gintzig for a sit-down interview.
During the discussion, Gintzig addressed how the combined system would handle negotiations with major insurance providers, charity care, a proposed $2 billion investment, and more.