California-based Prime Healthcare Foundation has filed a letter of intent that it plans to file a Certificate of Need application to acquire Central Maine Healthcare.
Healthcare acquisitions must be approved by the state of Maine through the Certificate of Need program.
The Prime Healthcare Foundation and Central Maine Healthcare announced the planned acquisition in January. Central Maine Healthcare's largest hospital in Lewiston has faced millions in deficits in recent years.
The Prime Healthcare Foundation is the nonprofit arm of Prime Healthcare, which operates dozens of hospitals across the U.S.
The organization has been recognized for quality and also faced lawsuits. In 2021, it paid $33 million to settle whistleblower allegations that it paid kickbacks to doctors and submitted false Medicare claims.
