The July 2009 merger of North Carolina-based Novant Health and Virginia-based Prince William Health System likely represents a significant event in hospital consolidationa non-faith-based, not-for-profit system reached into a new market across a relatively broad geography. This signals new developments: state and regional health systems are expanding to achieve the scale and sophistication required to succeed in the rapidly emerging health services paradigm, as advanced by health reform.

This panel will describe and discuss the following:
1. The factors behind recent consolidation trends in various areas of the country;
2. Why the hospital industry remained highly fragmented up to this point and why that is now changing;
3. How and why hospitals and health systems are positioning themselves to be a part (or not) of healthcare regionalization; and
4. Possible impact of regionalization on patients, communities, clinicians, and healthcare organizations

A facilitated Q&A discussion about what is occurring in the audiences regions and how individual hospital/health systems are responding will follow.

Learning objectives include:
1. Understand the key drivers motivating industry consolidation

2. Identify issues that could accelerate/decelerate the regionalization of healthcare delivery and factors that would support/prevent regional health system success

3. Provide strategies healthcare executives can consider for positioning their organizations to succeed in an environment likely to be characterized by larger regional and national healthcare systems

Participating with Mr. Grube and Mr. Kamholz on the panel will be a Regional Health System CEO or Business Development Executive Individual to be determined and a
Community Health System CEO, CFO, or Business Development Executive -- Individual to be determined