MT attorney general approves $74.8M Missoula hospital sale

Attorney General Tim Fox has approved the sale of Community Medical Center in Missoula to a joint business venture between Billings Clinic and a Tennessee company. Fox said Monday that his Office of Consumer Protection still must sign off on the way $74.8 million received from the sale will be distributed. Because Community Medical Center is a nonprofit, the proceeds from its sale to a for-profit group must go to a foundation with a health-focused mission that serves the same area as the hospital. The hospital's board of directors submitted its proposal for distribution last month and Fox's office asked for additional time to review the plan.