Nonprofit systems expand into Pennsylvania as for-profits exit, citing mission over margin
Pennsylvania saw four of the 22 hospital closures reported by Becker's in 2025, the most of any state, while for-profit operators like Prospect Medical Holdings and Community Health Systems have shuttered or exited facilities. Despite the distress, nonprofit systems including WVU Medicine, Northwell Health, and Kaiser Permanente's Risant Health are expanding into the state, according to Becker's Hospital Review.
Executives at WVU Medicine and Northwell told Becker's the expansion is driven by community need rather than improved market conditions. WVU Medicine expects to close Oct. 1 on Independence Health System's five hospitals, expanding its Pennsylvania footprint from one to six hospitals, with a separate deal for Fulton County Medical Center bringing it to seven. Northwell opened its first two Pennsylvania locations in Pike County, the state's only county without a hospital.
Pennsylvania hospitals face low Medicaid reimbursement (about 71 cents on the dollar), high malpractice exposure due to a 2023 venue-shopping rule change, and competition from large integrated systems like UPMC and Highmark. WVU Medicine has committed $800 million over five years to the Independence hospitals, including reopening a labor and delivery unit at Uniontown Hospital that had closed before its 2020 acquisition.