Long Beach-based Memorial Health Services said Wednesday it’s agreed to sell Anaheim Memorial Medical Center to Prime Healthcare Services Inc. of Riverside.
A price for the 224-bed hospital wasn’t disclosed.
Memorial said in July that it would look at selling or finding a partner for Anaheim Memorial. The hospital operator has invested $85 million in the facility since it became part of Memorial in late 1995.
Seismic issues also came into play. Memorial said costs to ensure it met California’s earthquake safety standards could exceed more than $100 million. Anaheim Memorial opened in 1958.
In a statement, Memorial Chief Executive Barry Arbuckle emphasized that any buyer had to agree “to a number of issues” before the deal.
Those include, he said, offering round-the-clock emergency services, continuing to serve Medicare, Medi-Cal and charity care patients, and that the purchaser would have sufficient resources to continue the hospital’s care provisions.
Prime owns and operates eight hospitals in Southern California, including Paradise Valley Hospital in National City.
A for-profit operator, Prime has been a controversy magnet. Its buy of Paradise Valley was protested by doctors. The attorney general’s office cleared the sale, predicated upon Prime’s adherence to standards set by its office.
