Steward to acquire 18 hospitals through merger with TN system

Steward HealthCare has announced plans to merge with a Tennessee health care system, making it the largest private for-profit hospital operator in the country. The deal with IASIS Healthcare LLC will bring Steward's total hospital count to 36 and mean the system will have projected revenue of almost $8 billion in its first year of merged operations. The hospitals included in the acquisition are located in Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Louisiana, Texas, and Utah.