Hunter
03/31/25
A federal judge has ordered MercyOne to produce records associated with its management of the now-bankrupt Mercy Iowa City.
The Gazette reports the order came as a committee overseeing the hospital’s liquidation accused MercyOne of withholding documents and details about what led to Mercy Iowa City’s swift financial decline.
Former Mercy Iowa City executives pointed to MercyOne’s oversight of the bankrupt hospital’s financial affairs and operations, and its oversight of Mercy Iowa City’s “failed request for proposal process in 2021 in an attempt to sell (the hospital) to another party.”
The University of Iowa offered to buy Mercy Iowa City in 2021 for more than $605 million, as they planned to make it part of a new UIHC community division. The offer failed to move forward, and MercyOne continued its partnership with Mercy Iowa City until they filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in August 2023.
The property was eventually purchased by UIHC for $28 million, a fraction of its original offer.