Hoeven: Vatican Approves Altru Health’s Acquisition of Devils Lake Hospital

Hoeven: Vatican Approves Altru Health's Acquisition of Devils Lake Hospital

DEVILS LAKE, N.D. - Senator John Hoeven today issued the following statement after the Vatican approved Altru Health's acquisition of the Devils Lake Hospital. As part of his efforts to address community concerns and ensure quality health care in the region, Hoeven worked to secure the acquisition agreement between Altru and CommonSpirit Health to the benefit of both patients and health care providers.

"We appreciate Altru and CommonSpirit for joining with us in this effort and for reaching agreement on the future of health care at the Devils Lake Hospital. Altru does a tremendous job and will provide quality health care for the entire Lake Region," said Senator Hoeven. "This is the result of tremendous collaboration. We thank Devils Lake Mayor Moe, Altru CEO Todd Forkel, Altru President Dr. Josh Deere, CommonSpirit Health Central Region President Tim Bricker, and everyone in the community who worked with us to identify solutions to the region's health care needs and make this agreement a reality."

"We are thrilled to welcome the Devils Lake hospital team to Altru; and to continue our commitment of strengthening care for the residents of the Lake Region," shared Todd Forkel, CEO at Altru Health System. "This would not have been possible without the steadfast leadership of Senator Hoeven, Mayor Moe and others whose efforts ensure a bright future for health care in the community."

"Reaching this point has taken patience, partnership and a shared focus on what's best for Devils Lake," said Tim Bricker, President of CommonSpirit Health's Central Region. "We're thankful for Senator Hoeven's engagement and for the collaboration that helped bring this process to completion."

Today's announcement follows Hoeven's multi-year effort to advance community-led solutions to ensure the best possible health care for the residents of the Devils Lake region. Hoeven repeatedly met and spoke with local leaders and officials from CommonSpirit and Altru on this issue, having:

• Arranged three community meetings across 2023 and 2024 with local residents, regional leaders, including from Spirit Lake Tribe, and health care providers to gather feedback and address community concerns.
  • After the first community meeting, Hoeven met with CommonSpirit Health CEO Wright Lassiter III in Washington, D.C., where the senator secured a commitment to work towards a solution.
  • CommonSpirit subsequently undertook a $10 million renovation of the hospital's emergency department.
• Held more than a dozen discussions with CommonSpirit Health Regional President Tim Bricker, Altru Health CEO Todd Forkel and Devils Lake Mayor Jim Moe to advance this priority.

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