By HFT Staff

The University of Kentucky Board of Trustees on Friday approved plans to proceed with the acquisition of St. Claire HealthCare in Morehead.

The move for St. Claire to become part of UK will expand clinical and academic programs as well as result in greater access to patient care for more Kentuckians. UK and St. Claire will now seek regulatory and other third-party approvals and finalize transition documents with a targeted closing date of July 1.

St. Claire HealthCare is one of the largest employers in the greater Morehead region with more than 1,300 employees including over 50 physicians and nearly 50 advanced practice professionals representing more than 20 medical specialties.

Since the 1960s, St. Claire HealthCare has partnered with UK on many successful academic and clinical programs to grow the healthcare workforce of northeastern Kentucky. UK and St. Claire co-developed the nationally recognized Rural Physician Leadership Program, in collaboration with Morehead State University. St. Claire is also home to the UK College of Health Sciences Physician Assistant Program. In addition, it is an established training and residency site for UK’s Colleges of Medicine, Pharmacy and Health Sciences.

In 2023, St. Claire HealthCare began an extensive request for information (RFI) process and reached out to 12 national and regional organizations. After consideration by the St. Claire Board of Directors and the Sisters of Notre Dame, UK was chosen as the best option to partner to serve the people of this region, said St. Claire president and CEO Donald H. Lloyd II.

It is anticipated that patients will receive care from the same trusted providers, with even greater access to more services and specialty providers through the UK academic health system.

St. Claire HealthCare includes a hospital with 139 licensed beds as well as seven primary care locations located within five counties, a multi-specialty medical pavilion, two urgent care centers, a pediatrics clinic, a retail pharmacy, counseling center, a medical equipment and supply store, and an outpatient center. Additionally, St. Claire HealthCare provides home health and hospice services in eight counties.