What were the stated benefits of the proposed merger?

Beaumont Health’s leadership thought they had found the perfect match for their health system. Beaumont Health was the largest healthcare system in Michigan, with $4.7 billion in annual net revenues, eight hospitals, nearly 5,000 affiliated physicians and more than 38,000 employees (Basen 2020; Bouffard 2020). The CEO had been there since 2015 and been well rewarded for his efforts to build the system, with compensation of $5.93 million in 2018 (Basen 2020) and $6.75 million in 2019 (Dixon 2020). The CEO and chief operating officer, both of whom had an MBA (master’s in business administration), had assumed their roles in 2015 and 2016, respectively. The CEO was hired to “help merge the three systems and balance budgets” (Basen 2020). The new CEO, John Fox, had an MBA and was very skilled in improving operations and did improve the system’s bottom line. However, there were ramifications to this focus.

Many noted that the company’s culture had changed with the coming of the new CEO, who focused almost exclusively on the bottom line.

For instance, many system publications highlighted financials rather than new research or physician achievements. Some employees claimed there was such an emphasis on profitability that the mission for hospitals to provide the best service to people had diminished. Professionals in the organization felt disrespected, as many experienced and private-practice physicians had been forced out to cut costs and make room for more Beaumont-employed doctors.