By HFT Staff

Franciscan Alliance will fully acquire Franciscan Beacon Hospital this spring, representatives announced. 

Franciscan Alliance and Beacon Health System entered an agreement in 2018 for a 50/50 joint partnership for the creation of Franciscan Beacon Hospital in La Porte, which included a building expansion project. 

The unique, 92,500-square-foot facility includes a 24-hour, 10-bed emergency department, eight inpatient beds for overnight care, laboratory services, an on-staff pharmacist, physical therapy, telehealth connectivity and the latest in imaging and diagnostic equipment. 

As part of the acquisition, all Beacon Health System nursing, imaging staff and patient access employees currently employed at the hospital – roughly 33 people -- will become Franciscan Alliance employees. 

The acquisition this spring supports Franciscan Alliance's regional approach to healthcare, which optimizes facilities and resources to improve the level of care for all of Northwest Indiana. 

A Beacon Medical Group medical office building is attached to the hospital. Those physicians and staff will remain in their current locations as Beacon staff members. 

The closing date for the acquisition is scheduled for March 1, with a 90-day transition period to the new Franciscan facility planned thereafter.