LANCASTER – Effective Aug. 1, Lancaster General Health (LG Health) will become a member of the University of Pennsylvania Health System (Penn Medicine). The integration follows recently completed reviews by the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office and the Federal Trade Commission.
The combination unites one of the nation’s top academic medical centers - world-renowned for its clinical and research excellence - with a health system nationally ranked for its clinical quality. Both are among the top five systems in Pennsylvania, as ranked by U.S. News & World Report.
“Joining the University of Pennsylvania Health System strengthens our region’s access to cost-effective, high-quality care, will improve our communities’ health and well-being, and will strengthen our complementary teaching and research missions,” said Thomas E. Beeman, President & Chief Executive Officer of Lancaster General Health. “An acclaimed partner such as Penn Medicine is essential to our efforts to successfully transform healthcare during a time of unprecedented change in our industry.”
Penn Medicine will provide for the healthcare needs of the LG Health community for as long as LG Health may be affiliated with Penn Medicine. LG Health’s assets will continue to be used to advance the health and well-being of the LG Health community.
LG Health’s governance will continue under its existing Board of Trustees, consisting of 14 volunteer business and community members and LG Health’s CEO. Two of the 14 will be selected by Penn Medicine. Likewise, three LG Health Trustees will join Penn Medicine’s Board of Trustees.
LG Health’s extensive community benefit efforts, including its charity-care policies, community health programs, and initiatives improving the health of the elderly, poor and other at-risk populations, will continue and be governed by the LG Health Board of Trustees.
“Lancaster General Health is an exceptional organization, providing the highest levels of care for patients and a leader in population health management,” said Ralph W. Muller, CEO, University of Pennsylvania Health System. “Uniting with LG Health offers powerful opportunities to connect medical teams and experts to improve care for all patients we serve and find solutions to healthcare delivery challenges ahead.
“A shared mission of innovation in all facets of healthcare is what brought us together and empowers us going forward as we embark on new discoveries to improve lives in our communities and across the Commonwealth.”
The Pennsylvania College of Health Sciences remains a part of the Lancaster General Health system.
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Penn Medicine is one of the world's leading academic medical centers, dedicated to the related missions of medical education, biomedical research, and excellence in patient care. Penn Medicine consists of the Raymond and Ruth Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania (founded in 1765 as the nation's first medical school) and the University of Pennsylvania Health System, which together form an enterprise of $5 billion.
The Perelman School of Medicine has been ranked among the top five medical schools in the United States for the past 17 years, according to U.S. News & World Report's survey of research-oriented medical schools. The School is consistently among the nation's top recipients of funding from the National Institutes of Health, with $392 million awarded in the 2013 fiscal year.
The University of Pennsylvania Health System's patient care facilities include: The Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania -- recognized as one of the nation's top "Honor Roll" hospitals by U.S. News & World Report; Penn Presbyterian Medical Center; Chester County Hospital; Penn Wissahickon Hospice; and Pennsylvania Hospital -- the nation's first hospital, founded in 1751. Additional affiliated inpatient care facilities and services throughout the Philadelphia region include Chestnut Hill Hospital and Good Shepherd Penn Partners, a partnership between Good Shepherd Rehabilitation Network and Penn Medicine.
Lancaster General Health is a three-hospital not-for-profit health system located in South Central Pennsylvania. Members of the LG Health system include the 533-bed Lancaster General Hospital (LGH), the 98-bed Women & Babies Hospital, and the 59-bed Lancaster Rehabilitation Hospital. Outpatient services are provided at 14 outpatient centers, including Downtown and Suburban Outpatient Pavilions, three Urgent Care sites and an LG Health Express location. Lancaster General Health Physicians includes more than 300 primary-care and specialist physicians at nearly 40 practices throughout South Central PA.
Designated three times as a Magnet hospital for nursing excellence, LGH has been recognized regionally and nationally for clinical excellence and patient safety. Open-heart-surgery outcomes at its Lancaster Heart & Vascular Institute are among the best in the nation. Women & Babies offers comprehensive services including deliveries, GYN services, surgical care and a 29-bed Neonatal Intensive Care Unit offering South Central PA’s most advanced care for newborns with extreme prematurity, acute low-birth weight and severe or complex illnesses.
The system’s Ann B. Barshinger Cancer Institute is the only provider in Central PA to offer multimodality radiosurgery, including Gamma Knife®, TomoTherapy® and M6 CyberKnife® technology via an integrated-care approach. The system’s Pennsylvania College of Health Sciences is a private, co-educational, Middle States-accredited four-year college offering a variety of associate and baccalaureate degree and certification programs in healthcare.
Penn Medicine is one of the world’s leading academic medical centers, dedicated to the related missions of medical education, biomedical research, excellence in patient care, and community service. The organization consists of the University of Pennsylvania Health System and Penn’s Raymond and Ruth Perelman School of Medicine, founded in 1765 as the nation’s first medical school.
The Perelman School of Medicine is consistently among the nation's top recipients of funding from the National Institutes of Health, with $550 million awarded in the 2022 fiscal year. Home to a proud history of “firsts” in medicine, Penn Medicine teams have pioneered discoveries and innovations that have shaped modern medicine, including recent breakthroughs such as CAR T cell therapy for cancer and the mRNA technology used in COVID-19 vaccines.
The University of Pennsylvania Health System’s patient care facilities stretch from the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania to the New Jersey shore. These include the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, Chester County Hospital, Lancaster General Health, Penn Medicine Princeton Health, and Pennsylvania Hospital—the nation’s first hospital, founded in 1751. Additional facilities and enterprises include Good Shepherd Penn Partners, Penn Medicine at Home, Lancaster Behavioral Health Hospital, and Princeton House Behavioral Health, among others.
Penn Medicine is an $11.1 billion enterprise powered by more than 49,000 talented faculty and staff.