Beth Israel Lahey Health has reached an agreement with New Hampshire regulators to acquire Exeter Health, committing to a multi-million dollar investment of the health system as well as millions of funding to the state.
The agreement, announced Wednesday by New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella’s office, comes over a year after the health system signed a letter of intent with the Exeter-based organization. If approved by Merrimack County Superior Court, the transaction would solidify another Massachusetts-owned hospital system in New Hampshire, less than 30 miles from Mass General Brigham-operated Wentworth-Douglass Hospital in Dover.
Formella’s office said that an investigation undertaken by the New Hampshire Charitable Trusts Unit and Consumer Protection and Antitrust Bureau at first found that the original acquisition risked lessening competition in the state.
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After working with both parties, the AG’s office negotiated “proposed terms that will alleviate the potential harm to health care consumers in New Hampshire,” the statement said.
Beth Israel Lahey Health will make $375 million in capital commitments to Exeter, as well as pay the state $10 million over a 10-year term, which will help establish a health care market research entity to monitor and publicly report on the New Hampshire health care market.
For at least a decade, Exeter must maintain labor and delivery services at the hospital and operate a minimum of 10 beds for the custody and treatment of people who are involuntarily admitted to the state mental health services. Additionally, the agreement includes protections against non-competes for physicians and mid-level providers and prohibits the health system from interfering with patient referral patterns and treatment decisions. A third party monitor will audit compliance with the deal.
“As we welcome a large out-of-state system into New Hampshire, we must be mindful of the potential risks the transaction poses to health care consumers,” said Formella.
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The deal vaults a hurdle that Mass General Brigham struggled to overcome, after the health system attempted to acquire Exeter and combine it with Wentworth-Douglass in 2018. However Mass General Brigham ultimately walked away from the transaction in January 2021 due to regulatory pushback.
Jessica Bartlett can be reached at jessica.bartlett@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @ByJessBartlett.