MOORESVILLE, N.C. — Duke University Health System (Duke Health), a Durham, N.C.-based healthcare affiliate of Duke University, has acquired Lake Norman Regional Medical Center, an acute-care hospital in the Charlotte suburb of Mooresville, for $284 million. Formerly owned by subsidiaries of Tennessee-based Community Health Systems Inc., the 123-bed facility will now operate as Duke Health Lake Norman Hospital.
“We have a bright future ahead and look forward to bringing the excellence and innovation of Duke Health to enhance the care offered at Duke Health Lake Norman Hospital and clinics,” says Craig Albanese, CEO of Duke Health.
Duke Health Lake Norman Hospital offers 24-hour emergency care, labor and delivery services, cardiology, surgical and orthopedic care and an outpatient imaging center. The hospital has been operating since 1926 when it opened as Lowrance Hospital. The property comprises a main 171,000-square-foot hospital building and a separate 6,200-square-foot outpatient facility.
Over the next several months, the hospital’s electronic medical records will be integrated into Duke Health’s system for patients to receive full access to the provider’s specialty care. Employees and providers at the hospital were also offered jobs with Duke Health to “enable a seamless transition for patients to have continued access to the providers, clinics and facilities they know and trust.” Additionally, Duke Health is providing interim leadership until a new hospital president is confirmed.
Duke Health’s purchase of the hospital transpired about six months after Novant Health abandoned its plans to acquire the facility when federal regulators blocked the acquisition, claiming it would give Novant “too much control in the healthcare market” in the area, according to local news outlet WCNC.
This acquisition marks an expansion of Duke Health’s services outside the Raleigh-Durham area.
Duke Health currently comprises three hospitals — Duke University Hospital, Duke Regional Hospital and Duke Raleigh Hospital — as well as outpatient facilities including Duke Primary Care and Duke Connected Care. The company is the largest employer in Durham County at approximately 26,278 employees, according to Duke Health.
— Abby Cox