Intermountain-Owned Saltzer Shutters Operations, Sells Clinics

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Dive Brief:

• Financially strapped Idaho-based Saltzer Health eked out a midnight deal to sell its urgent care, surgical services and outpatient imaging businesses to regional healthcare providers, the company said on Monday. 
• Trinity Health-owned Saint Alphonsus Health System purchased Salter’s ambulatory surgery center and two urgent care centers, while Intermountain Medical Imaging of Idaho bought Saltzer’s imaging center. Saltzer did not return a request for comment about deal terms.
• However, the deal did not save the company. In January, Intermountain Health-owned Saltzer said it would close by March 29 if it couldn’t find a buyer for some of its operations, citing economic and financial challenges. Despite finding buyers, Saltzer shut its doors at the end of March.

Dive Insight:

Concerns about care access mounted after Saltzer announced it might shutter services earlier this year.

Saltzer offered vital services to the Boise, Idaho-area, serving approximately 100,000 patients annually — including over 35,000 primary care patients — at 11 locations, according to a spokesperson.

It also operated the Boise area’s only 24/7 urgent-care clinic, according to reporting from the Idaho Statesman. Its Ten Mile Clinic urgent care is the only clinic in the state with CT and ultrasound scans on site, according to Saltzer.

Now, Saltzer’s name will disappear from the Treasure Valley area. In addition to the sale, the medical group said multiple clinics will be leased to other providers. Saltzer also did not return Healthcare Dive’s request for comment on the number of clinics being re-leased.

Some of the re-leased facilities will be staffed by former Saltzer physicians. Other Saltzer doctors intend to join different local medical groups or open their own independent clinics, Saltzer said.

The facilities purchased by Saint Alphonsus Health System and Intermountain Medical Imaging will close briefly to allow for transitions, according to the announcement. 

Saltzer’s closure comes almost four years after it was acquired by Salt Lake City-based Intermountain Health, which operates 33 hospitals across seven states, according to its website.

Saltzer said macroeconomic factors factored into its financial difficulties, adding that it had lost “several million dollars” each month. The health system called continuation “unsustainable.”

Prior to closing, Saltzer had cut back on patient services in a bid to improve its profitability. Last year, the medical group discontinued walk-in urgent care at most of its clinics in Ada and Canyon counties and cut its ambulance transport services.

Across the state, Idaho patients face a lack of primary care options. The state’s Department of Health and Welfare has estimated over 98% of Idahoans live in an area with a shortage of primary care professionals. 

“Our goal during this challenging process was to ensure that as many medical services as possible continue to operate and serve the healthcare needs of the community,” said Jana Huffman, assistant vice president for the Intermountain Medical Group, in a Monday statement on the deal.

Finding buyers somewhat assuages care access concerns. A full Saltzer closure could have exacerbated already months-long wait times throughout the region, experts told the Idaho Statesman. Still, clinic closures are expected to cause some care delays as Saltzer doctors take time to find new positions, according to the Statesman.