Regional Hospital Exploring Affiliation With UMass Memorial Health

Struggling to maintain its status as an independent community hospital, Milford Regional Medical Center in Central Massachusetts is exploring a corporate affiliation with UMass Memorial Health. The deal would also include the Milford Regional Physician Group.

UMass Memorial Health is the largest nonprofit healthcare system in Central Massachusetts with more than 15,500 employees and 2,100 physicians, many of whom are members of UMass Memorial Medical Group and Harrington Physician Services. It is the clinical partner of UMass Chan Medical School.

A full-service, community and regional teaching hospital, Milford Regional is a 148-bed, nonprofit, acute-care facility serving a region of 20-plus towns with more than 300 primary care and specialty physicians. In 2015, it opened a 78,000 square-foot building that houses a new emergency department, intensive care unit and private patient rooms.

The hospital says that the lasting impacts of the pandemic and sustained financial losses have inhibited its ability to act on necessary growth and expansion.

“Building on the foundation of our outstanding team, high-quality care, mature physician network and our supportive community, a future corporate affiliation with UMass Memorial Health would make it possible for us to move forward with necessary and strategic expansion, among other mutually beneficial opportunities, to continue to meet the growing needs of our community, locally,” said Milford Regional President and CEO Edward J. Kelly, in a statement.

In 1991, Milford Regional Medical Center became the first hospital to clinically affiliate with UMass Memorial Medical Center. Since then, many additional clinical and educational programs have been created with UMass Memorial Health to bolster the level of care offered to the greater Milford community.

“Milford Regional has an outstanding reputation as a provider of high-quality health care for its community,” said UMass Memorial Health President and CEO Eric W. Dickson, M.D., in a statement. “This proposed corporate affiliation will improve access to healthcare services for patients across Central Massachusetts. We look forward to continuing our discussions and are confident we can reach agreement in a way that meets shared goals and supports the continued success of Milford Regional.”

According to these leaders, the two organizations will now move forward to conduct further due diligence and seek to reach agreement on a potential corporate affiliation that meets key goals, including:

• Maintaining Milford Regional’s position as the provider of choice in the Greater Milford community;
• Enhancing opportunities and strengthening retention of Milford Regional employees and providers;
• Making capital investments to enhance services, equipment and care delivery; and
• Maintaining clinical programs and services that are valued by the community.