Tenet putting four Bootheel area hospitals up for sale

Daily Dunklin Democrat

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. -- Tenet Healthcare Corporation announced Tuesday it plans to sell or consolidate 14 hospitals, including those in Kennett, Mo., Poplar Bluff, Mo., and Jonesboro, Ark.

The plans are part of several initiatives Tenet said are designed to sharpen its strategic focus, reduce operating expenses and accelerate its repurchase of shares.

It also plans to reduce non-patient care expenses by at least $100 million annually as part of its program to improve operating efficiency and profit margins.

Proceeds of the planned divestitures will be used primarily to accelerate its planned share repurchases.

"As we move through 2003, Tenet's new management team is focused clearly on a defined set of objectives, resolving the specific challenges we face, operating the comany with greater efficiency and assuring the success of our core strategy: to build competitive networks of quality hospitals principally in major markets," said Trevor Fetter, Tenet president.

Concentrating elsewhere

The company said it plans to sell or consolidate 14 of its 114 hospitals as part of the efforts to concentrate on core network hospitals in major markets.

Tenet said its three hospitals in Southeast Missouri and one in northeast Arkansas will be divested. Up for sale are the 116-bed Twin Rivers Regional Medical Center in Kennett; two hospitals in Poplar Bluff, the 201-bed Three Rivers Healthcare North Campus and 222-bed Three Rivers Healthcare South; and the 104-bed Regional Medical Center of Northeast Arkansas in Jonesboro.

Tenet said it was making the move to concentrate on its growing network in St. Louis.

Local hospital officials had no comment on the announcement.