Working to improve local access to high-quality health care, the board of RMC Health System in Anniston has signed a letter of intent to affiliate with the UAB Health System.
“RMC’s Board is excited to take this next step to improve local access to the best healthcare,” said Jay Jenkins, chair of the RMC board of directors. “An affiliation with UAB will help ensure we can continue to meet the health care needs of our friends, family and neighbors in Northeast Alabama for years to come.”
RMC President and CEO Louis Bass added, “I’m thrilled about this next step to pursue an affiliation with the UAB Health System. We know the UAB Health System supports our core beliefs and the way we care for people, and that UAB Health’s priorities for excellent patient care align with our own. Together, we are committed to delivering quality local health care to our community.”
Speaking for UAB, President Ray Watts, M.D., said, “This arrangement would bring two outstanding health care organizations together. RMC is the flagship hospital for Northeast Alabama, and this linkage would combine the strengths of the UAB Health System with the outstanding care that RMC has provided their patients for years. We look forward to working with RMC to explore how this closer relationship could boost and enhance health care delivery for the residents of Calhoun County and all of Northeast Alabama.”
RMC has worked with UAB for more than a decade, particularly in areas such as cancer care and pathology.
“A new affiliate agreement would extend the full clinical expertise and medical research capabilities of UAB to the Anniston/Oxford region and help RMC continue to deliver exceptional care to their community,” said Dawn Bulgarella, CEO of the UAB Health System. “Additionally, there are potential advantages to be gained through combined purchasing power, governance and economies of scale that would benefit both organizations.”
The affiliation requires formal approval from both groups and other government approval.
UAB Health System has similar affiliation agreements with three other hospitals — Baptist Health-Montgomery, Cooper Green Mercy Health Services and Medical West. It also has a strategic alliance with Ascension St. Vincent’s and management agreements with five other health care facilities.
