Dartmouth-Hitchcock and GraniteOne Health, an existing group that includes Catholic Medical Center in Manchester, have signed an agreement to combine under a single new healthcare network.
The formal agreement announced Wednesday would combine more than half-a-dozen hospitals across New Hampshire into a single new healthcare network.
The official agreement comes nine months after the groups signed a letter of intent. The deal will need approval from the state Attorney General’s Charitable Trust Unit and Consumer Protection Bureau as well as the Federal Trade Commission.
The groups say the new system will allow them to expand healthcare services and capacity across the state. Under the proposed deal, each hospital would retain their local leadership and local identity. Catholic Medical Center would continue to operate under the Catholic model of healthcare.
The move follows a string of other proposed hospital mergers or acquisitions in recent years.
