Victor Harrington, regional director of marketing and business development at UP Health System, a LifePoint subsidiary, said the merger will not affect hospital patients.

“The transaction should have no impact on the way patients access our hospital, physicians or other locations,” Harrington said in a prepared statement. “Our priority and focus will continue to be providing high quality patient care.”

Upon closing of the transaction, LifePoint shareholders will receive $65 in cash for each share of LifePoint common stock they own, resulting in a LifePoint enterprise value of about $5.6 billion, including $2.9 billion of net debt and minority interest, according to a press release.

“UP Health System views the announcement of one of our owners, LifePoint Health, merging with fellow health care leader RCCH HealthCare Partners as extremely positive,” Harrington said in the statement. “The two organizations are aligned and share UP Health System’s commitment to ensuring that our communities have access to high quality care, close to home. We are proud of our contributions to the U.P. and our affiliation with LifePoint. After the merger closes, we believe we will be well positioned to meaningfully extend our mission of making communities healthier.”

The new UP Health System-Marquette hospital located along Baraga Avenue is pictured. Private-equity firm Apollo Global Management announced Monday that LifePoint Health Inc. and RCCH HealthCare Partners, LLC — which is owned by certain funds managed by Apollo affiliates — have entered into a definitive agreement to merge companies. (Journal photo by Jaymie Depew)

RCCH HealthCare Partners and LifePoint Health are both headquartered in Brentwood, Tennessee. RCCH HealthCare Partners operates 16 regional health systems in 12 states and has more than 14,000 employees and 2,500 affiliated physicians and mid-level providers. LifePoint owns and operates community hospitals, regional health systems, physician practices, outpatient centers and post-acute facilities in 22 states.

According to a press release, the combination of the two companies will create a strong health care provider with 2017 revenues of more than $8 billion as well as 7,000 affiliated physicians, about 60,000 employees and more than 12,000 licensed beds.

The combined company will be privately held, operate under the LifePoint Health name and be led by William F. Carpenter III, chairman and chief executive officer of LifePoint.

“LifePoint and RCCH are aligned in our missions and commitment to ensuring that non-urban communities across the country have access to quality care, close to home,” Carpenter said in a release. “Together, we can extend this shared focus while generating new opportunities for growth and partnerships that will help us navigate the changing healthcare industry dynamics.”

The transaction is expected to be finalized over the course of the next several months, with approval by LifePoint’s shareholders and receipt of regulatory approvals needed for completion.

Under agreement terms, which was unanimously approved recently by the LifePoint Board of Directors, LifePoint may actively solicit alternative acquisition proposals until Aug. 22.

“There can be no assurances that this process will result in a superior proposal, and LifePoint does not intend to discuss any developments with regard to this process unless and until the LifePoint Board of Directors makes a decision with respect to any potential superior proposal,” the release states.

Jaymie Depew can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 206.