Illinois hospital merger, expansion called off

Hospital officials remain tight-lipped about why the merger of Springield, IL-based Hospital Sisters Health System and St. Anthony's Health System of Alton fell through. The move also calls off the $70 million expansion project already under way at St. Anthony's. "We're not going to go into the why the affiliation didn't happen," said Hospital Sisters spokesman Dave Urbanek. "It wasn't the right time for this kind of affiliation between the two systems."