Unable to find a buyer, hospital group Intermountain recently shuttered an Idaho multispecialty provider of radiology services it acquired four years ago.
Saltzer Health announced in January that it would likely cease operations if it could not find a new partner by April. Founded in 1961, Salt Lake City-based Intermountain acquired the physician group in 2020. However, Saltzer has grappled with “ongoing financial and economic challenges” since then, leading to the “difficult decision” to close.
“We are dedicated to ensuring a seamless transition for our patients and community, providing guidance and support every step of the way,” the company said in a message posted to its website March 29. “While Saltzer Health is closed, our legacy of quality care, deep community ties and the spirit of innovation will continue to thrive as our providers and caregivers continue with new organizations in the community.”
At the time of the Intermountain sale, Saltzer employed about 80 physicians and other providers, servicing 102,000 patients across eight locations in Idaho’s Canyon and Ada counties. The group also opened the Saltzer Health Medical Imaging Center in Meridian, Idaho, in 2021 and altogether employed about two-dozen radiologists across subspecialties including nuclear medicine, interventional care and women’s imaging.
Days after the closure, Saltzer announced it struck a deal to sell the “world class” radiology center. Intermountain Medical Imaging plans to briefly close the clinic to “allow for a transition” before reopening by the end of April. Intermountain also is committing to offer positions to several Saltzer employees who had worked at the imaging center.
“We look forward to being able to support continuity of care and expand essential outpatient imaging access within the community,” Wayne Baldwin, CEO of Intermountain Medical Imaging, said April 1. “We will be ready to see patients in a few short weeks. We are very pleased to ensure that imaging services at Ten Mile Road will continue to be available to the community.”
In the same announcement, Saltzer said it also is selling its Ambulatory Surgery Center at Ten Mile Clinic in Meridian, along with two other urgent care centers, to Boise, Idaho-based Saint Alphonsus Health System.
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.