St. David’s HealthCare to buy Forest Park hospital in Texas

St. David’s HealthCare announced plans to buy Forest Park Medical Center’s Austin, Texas, hospital for $115 million, reports BizJournal.

The hospital has been empty for longer than a year since the physician-owned Forest Park Medical Center system of six hospitals all filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Todd Furniss, chairman of the management company for the Forest Park chain, said he expects to get court approval Friday and close the transaction with St. David’s, which is the Hospital Corporation of America (HCA) partner in Austin. HCA is the majority owner of St. David’s.

“The bottom line is HCA is excited about the prospect of opening the facility, they will be working with the local doctors who are part of the operating company, and they are moving forward briskly,” said Furniss. “This transaction signals the appetite that HCA has to be a strong player in the Texas market, they really liked the facilities that Neal Richards Group developed, and these facilities fit into their desired footprint and their desired method of delivering services.”