Frequently Asked Questions

Sanford Health and North Memorial Health have signed a definitive agreement to come together as a single nonprofit health system dedicated to improving the health of our communities, ensuring long-term sustainability and expanding access to primary and specialized care in the region.

By bringing our complementary strengths together, we can do more for patients than either of us can do alone. By coming together as one nonprofit system with a shared commitment to the people we serve, we can expand access, strengthen key services, bring new technology to care sooner, and support the teams patients rely on, especially as needs grow across our communities.

At the same time, health care is changing fast – costs are rising, staffing is harder, and financial pressures can affect what services are available close to home. Taking this step now helps protect around-the-clock essential care and keep it affordable. Sanford’s strong, steady operating performance and broad expertise add stability, so we can continue serving patients and communities with the reliability they expect and deserve.

With a charitable mission and a focus on the patients we serve, as one system we will be better equipped to meet the growing health needs of our communities, invest in expanded services and new technologies, navigate unexpected headwinds, strengthen our health care workforce pipeline for the future and improve care in ways we’re not able to do on our own.

Sanford Health’s initiatives in virtual care and digital health platforms can connect patients to specialty care earlier, reduce delays and support clinicians with better real-time insights at the point of care. Patients will also gain access to Sanford Health’s advanced personalized medicine capabilities, leveraging genomic research, advanced diagnostics and predictive analytics to tailor treatments for cancer, cardiovascular disease and other complex conditions and identify them earlier. Patients will also have access to emerging therapies and treatments through more than 1,000 active clinical trials with Sanford Research.

Together, we will be better positioned to improve operating performance, maintain critical services and invest in patient care to build a firm foundation for the future. Coming together will enable a $600 million investment to stabilize and strengthen North Memorial Health – Robbinsdale Hospital, which serves as a critical safety net hospital and a cornerstone of care in the community, and advance the next phase of growth in Maple Grove, doubling the size of the hospital to enhance services to meet rising demand in the northwest metro and central Minnesota.

North Memorial Health and its Board of Trustees led a thoughtful process to identify the right long-term partner. We cast a wide net exploring 20+ organizations for a potential partnership (metro, outstate, regional and national health systems and for-profit entities). Measured on 12 strategic metrics, Sanford Health emerged as the strongest fit based on its nonprofit mission and culture, capabilities and expertise, and a proven track record of investing in the communities it serves.

Sanford’s consistent operating performance, depth of expertise and diversification will enable long-term financial stability to ensure we can continue to serve our communities in the way they expect and deserve. Sanford shares the same values as North Memorial Health and both have cultures that are powered by a spirit of entrepreneurship, resilience and a relentless focus on our patients.

Sanford Health’s track record demonstrates our commitment to expanding access to care. Since partnering with North Country Health Services in Bemidji in 2011, Sanford has opened 20 new clinics across Minnesota. During that same period, we’ve closed only one clinic, and that location operated just one day a week.

We’ve consistently invested in bringing more care closer to home by expanding primary care, specialty care and outpatient services in the communities we serve. That’s the same approach we’re bringing to this partnership. Our goal is to strengthen access by making the long-term investments needed to preserve essential services, expand access to care and ensure communities continue to have the care they need close to home.

Our experience partnering with like-minded nonprofit health systems has consistently expanded access and strengthened quality. We encourage people to judge us by our track record.

When Sanford partnered with Medcenter One in Bismarck, it was a one-star hospital. Today, Sanford Medical Center Bismarck is a four-star hospital, and we’ve recruited more than 400 providers since the partnership. Our Level I Trauma Center in Sioux Falls is now a five-star hospital and our Level I Trauma Center in Fargo is a four-star hospital.

We look forward to bringing that same commitment to quality, clinical excellence and continuous improvement to North Memorial Health – building on the outstanding care already being provided while making the long-term investments needed to further strengthen quality, improve outcomes and expand access for the communities North serves.

We know affordability is one of the biggest concerns facing patients and families today. As a nonprofit health system, we’re committed to ensuring cost isn’t a barrier to receiving care.

Affordability begins with helping patients understand and access the health coverage available to them. Our financial advocates work one-on-one with patients to explore insurance options, determine eligibility for public programs and connect them with available resources before they ever receive a bill.

For patients who need additional support, Sanford offers a robust financial assistance program to help ensure everyone can receive medically necessary care, regardless of their ability to pay. More than 95% of patients who apply for financial assistance receive support, and 85% receive full financial assistance for medically necessary care.

We’ve also used a presumptive charity care model for more than a decade to proactively identify patients who may qualify for assistance before bills are sent. Today, approximately 25% to 30% of financial assistance recipients qualify automatically through that process, helping reduce financial stress and allowing patients to focus on their health instead of worrying about medical bills.

Additionally, patients are not required to make payments while their eligibility is being determined, and we review more than 2,500 new financial assistance applications each month. For patients who don’t qualify for full assistance, we offer flexible, interest-free payment plans to help make care more affordable and reduce financial stress.

Sanford Health currently serves close to 300,000 Minnesota patients annually and employs nearly 10,000 team members in the state, reflecting a longstanding commitment to Minnesota communities. Sanford operates or has affiliation agreements with 20 medical centers and 74 clinics across the western third of the state, stretching from International Falls, to Bemidji, Thief River Falls and Worthington. Sanford also operates 38 senior care communities and serves 24,000 health plan members across Minnesota.

Yes. There are no changes to your providers because of this announcement.

Our focus is to make care more affordable and easier to access. That includes financial assistance for those who qualify and expanding virtual care, which can reduce extra costs like travel, time off work, and childcare.

Health care costs are shaped by many factors – like drug prices, workforce shortages, and insurance design – so no single organization can fix affordability on its own. But we can be accountable for what we do control: reducing duplication, investing in the right services, and keeping care close to home so patients can get the right care at the right time.

There are no changes to current services, facilities or day-to-day operations. Until the partnership agreement closes, Sanford Health and North Memorial Health remain separate organizations and will continue to operate business as usual.

This partnership is designed to stabilize and strengthen care in and around Robbinsdale Hospital and accelerate the planned expansion in Maple Grove, inclusive of North Memorial Health’s broader footprint of clinics, urgent care sites and ambulatory surgery centers. We are committed to protecting and enhancing the services our communities depend on.

Coming together as one system will stabilize and strengthen North Memorial Health – Robbinsdale Hospital, which serves as a critical safety net hospital, Level I trauma center and cornerstone of care in the community. As one system, we will be better positioned to improve operating performance, maintain critical services and reinvest in patient care to build a firm foundation for the future.

Coming together as one health system accelerates a long-recognized community need — a critical expansion of services in Maple Grove, one of the state’s fastest-growing communities. Plans to double the size of North Memorial Health – Maple Grove Hospital are necessary to meet the growing need for emergency, labor and delivery and specialty services.

We are committed to advancing the next phase of growth in Maple Grove. After closing of the partnership agreement, the health system will double the size of Maple Grove Hospital and enhance specialty services to meet rising demand in the northwest metro and central Minnesota. Additionally, together, we will also expand campus access to primary and specialty care for patients of all ages.

By bringing together our Level I trauma centers, North Memorial Health’s nationally recognized hospital-based EMS program and Sanford Health’s AirMed transport, we can reach more patients with lifesaving care and strengthen Minnesota’s emergency services safety net.

As one system, we are committed to ensuring equitable access to care for everyone, including communities that have historically faced challenges to health care access. Together, we will also continue our historic commitment to working alongside community organizations to advance the care needs of those we serve.

Our people will remain at the heart of everything we do. By uniting the best attributes of both organizations in a single health system, we will strengthen our commitment to serving as an employer of choice, foster a vibrant culture focused on listening and engagement and expand access to professional growth opportunities and wellbeing programs.

Greater resources and operational expertise will provide needed stability, maintain core services and reduce uncertainty for our people in an increasingly complex health care environment. In addition, our teams will benefit from a more diversified operating model that supports consistent investment in workforce needs, facilities and clinical programs. Sanford Health has a reputation as an employer of choice wherever it serves, and together with North Memorial Health, we hold that same aspiration.

We recognize the longstanding affinity for North Memorial Health and are committed to developing a shared strategy to transition the brand to Sanford Health over time.

Our partnership is expected to close sometime this year and is subject to the completion of regulatory processes and other customary closing conditions. We will work cooperatively with all relevant federal and state agencies reviewing the proposed partnership.

We welcome your questions and feedback. Please visit our Contact page to submit a question, or email us directly at sanfordnorthinfo@sanfordhealth.org. We are committed to transparency throughout this process and will continue to share updates on this site.