Four Ascension Living senior living and care properties in Illinois will be sold to Ontario, CA-based Prime Healthcare along with nine Ascension hospitals and associated physician practices in The Prairie State in a deal announced Thursday.

The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2025. Upon completion, the acquisition will be the largest in the history of Prime Healthcare and the Prime Healthcare Foundation, a 501(c)3 public charity, Ascension and Prime said, describing the deal as “historic.”

“We are confident that Prime will continue its record of excellence and look forward to working in partnership through the sale close process,” said Polly Davenport, president and CEO of Ascension Illinois. Until the deal closes, the affected Ascension properties and Prime Healthcare will continue to operate independently under a consulting agreement between the two organizations.

The four properties of St. Louis-based Ascension Living included in the purchase agreement: 

  • Fox Knoll Village, an independent living, assisted living and memory care community in Aurora, IL;
  • Villa Franciscan Place, offering skilled nursing, memory care and rehabilitation on the campus of AMITA Health Saint Joseph Medical Center in Joliet, IL;
  • Heritage Village / Heritage Lodge, offering independent living, assisted living, memory care, skilled nursing and rehabilitation in Kankakee, IL; and
  • Resurrection Place, a skilled nursing and rehabilitation facility in Park Ridge, IL.

In addition to the long-term care sites, the purchase agreement includes these Ascension Illinois hospitals: Ascension Holy Family (Des Plaines), Ascension Mercy (Aurora), Ascension Resurrection (Chicago), Ascension Saint Francis (Evanston), Ascension Saint Joseph (Joliet), Ascension Saint Joseph (Elgin), Ascension Saint Mary (Kankakee) and Ascension Saint Mary and Saint Elizabeth (Chicago).

Ascension, a nonprofit, Catholic healthcare system, chose to sell the properties to Prime Healthcare, which with its foundation has a mix of for-profit and not-for-profit properties, “after thorough due diligence, a values compatibility assessment, and an ethics discernment process,” according to the announcement.

The two entities said that the transaction will “preserve the legacy and mission of Ascension Illinois,” adding that “Prime has earned national recognition for its unique ability to transform financially struggling hospitals.”

As part of the acquisition, Prime will spend $250 million on facility upgrades, capital improvements, “substantial” technology investments and system upgrades, according to the announcement. “Prime Healthcare has all available funding and no debt will be put on the hospitals to complete this transaction,” the entities said.

Additionally, Prime has agreed to make offers of employment to “substantially all” current employees, although a Prime spokesperson told the Chicago Sun-Times that they will be required to re-apply for their jobs.

The long-term care facilities and hospitals will join Prime Healthcare’s national health system, which currently includes 44 hospitals, more than 300 outpatient locations and almost 45,000 employees and affiliated physicians.

The deal marks Prime’s entry into the Illinois market. The organization already operates in 14 other states: Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Texas.

The Ascension system currently includes approximately 134,000 employees, 35,000 affiliated providers and 140 hospitals across 19 states and Washington, DC, according to the announcement. As of March 31, the system included 40 senior living and care settings, according to a report posted on the organization’s website. Ascension Living has communities in 11 states and the nation’s capital, including 12 in Illinois, according to the Ascension Living website.

In an online post on Monday before the Prime deal was announced, Ascension President Eduardo Conrado noted that the organization had faced “significant challenges” — lower patient volumes, cost increases and labor shortages — as have other healthcare systems around the country.

“These challenges have provided Ascension the opportunity to reimagine our ministry and affirm our Mission in a changing healthcare environment, especially as more communities seek care in non-traditional settings,” he wrote. As part of that process, Conrado said, the organization has sold some hospitals and invested in acute and nonacute care services such as home care, virtual care, ambulatory surgery centers, physician practices, physical and occupational therapy, imaging and pharmacy services.

“Portfolio reconfiguration decisions such as acquisitions, joint ventures or divestitures are made with the utmost seriousness,” he added. “In recent divestitures, we recognized that other healthcare providers were better positioned to serve the community through a more integrated local network.”

News of the transaction comes just days after Ascension Living announced a new CEO, Erin Shadbolt. Shadbolt is continuing to serve as vice president of post-acute and at-home services in addition to CEO.