RWJ Health System, Barnabas Health Merger Will Create NJ's Largest Health System

In a move that will create the largest healthcare system in New Jersey, Robert Wood Johnson Health System and Barnabas Health have signed a merger agreement that will create RWJ Barnabas Health. The merger is expected to be complete in 2016, but the agreement is subject to review by the New Jersey Attorney General.

The newly combined system will represent operating revenues of more than $4.5 billion, 260,000 inpatient admissions, 2 million outpatient visits, and nearly 10,000 physicians, residents, and interns. The system will include 11 acute care hospitals, 3 children’s hospitals, a pediatric rehabilitation hospital, a behavioral health center, ambulatory care centers, and 5 fitness and wellness centers.

“The new health system will comprise effectively every clinical service from primary to quaternary and greatly strengthen our commitment to medical education and research,” Barry H. Ostrowsky, president and chief executive officer of Barnabas Health, said in a statement. "The merger also will provide a large enough geography to be appropriate for the migration to population health management.”

Mr Ostrowsky will serve as the inaugural president and CEO of RWJ Barnabas Health, while Stephen K. Jones, the current president and CEO of Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital and Robert Wood Johnson Health System, will serve as the chief academic officer in the Office of the President. Mr Jones will lead efforts to further strengthen the new health system’s relationship with Rutgers University.

All parties involved expect a smooth transition process to a larger health system that will provide the best in academic medicine and community-based care to a diverse set of communities throughout New Jersey.

“As health care in America transforms, the new alliance positions our system as one of the foremost providers of health care and wellness services in the entire region,” said Marc E. Berson, chairman of the Barnabas Health Board of Trustees.