Catholic Health East is a Newtown Square-based nationalmulti-institution Catholic health system that owns and operatesfacilities co-sponsored by religious congregations, and Sisters ofCharity of Seton Hill is this facility's sponsor. The 148-bedhospital faces a projected $6.5-million loss from operations thisyear, and both organizations had agreed on the need for a newstrategic partner and direction.

An Excela spokeswoman tells GlobeSt.com the acquisition cost isapproximately $16 million. "Other options were explored," she saysbefore Excela became "the invited buyer to the table." Excela plansto invest $10 million in upgrades to the facility over the nextfive years.

As a part of the agreement, Mercy Jeannette will become a campusof Excela's nearby Westmoreland Hospital and be renamed ExcelaHealth Westmoreland Hospital at Jeannette. Since its inception in2004, Excela has acquired and brought financial stability toLaTrobe Hospital in LaTrobe and Frick Hospital in Mount Pleasant,as well as to Westmoreland, which is located in Greensburg.