Amita Health, the largest health system in the Chicago area, is splitting up.
The Lisle-based organization was formed in 2015 as a joint venture of national chains Ascension and AdventHealth. Now the organizations are divvying up the chain’s 19 hospitals.
“Leaders of both sponsoring organizations have determined that going forward separately is in their collective best interest in order to more nimbly meet the changing needs and expectations of consumers in the rapidly evolving healthcare environment,” Amita said in a statement today. “There will be no disruption to patient care.”
While Amita is the largest local chain by hospital count, it's the third-largest by revenue behind Advocate Aurora Health and Northwestern Medicine, with $3.6 billion in 2020 net patient revenue.
Amita doubled in size in 2018 after absorbing Presence Health, a local Catholic chain with 10 hospitals that Ascension acquired.
Keith Parrott joined as CEO in January 2020. Soon after, one of his 19 Chicago-area hospitals, Amita Health St. Alexius Medical Center in Hoffman Estates, was treating the second confirmed COVID-19 case in the U.S.
Moving forward, Parrott will lead Ascension's local hospitals and clinics while Thor Thordarson, currently Amita's chief operating officer, will lead AdventHealth's local hospitals clinics, Amita spokeswoman Olga Solares said in an email. She didn't comment on the timeline for the separation.
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