Community Health Systems to Sell Four Arkansas Hospitals to Freeman Health System for $112 Mn

By acquiring the Arkansas hospitals, Freeman is expected to expand its regional presence and strengthen access to hospital and outpatient services for communities in the northwestern part of the state.

Community Health Systems has announced a definitive agreement to sell four Arkansas hospitals to Freeman Health System for $112 Mn. The deal includes multiple medical centres and related outpatient facilities, and is expected to close in the second quarter of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals and standard closing conditions.

The hospitals involved in the agreement are the 128-bed Northwest Medical Centre–Bentonville, the 222-bed Northwest Medical Centre–Springdale, the 64-bed Northwest Medical Centre–Willow Creek Women’s Hospital in Johnson, and the 73-bed Siloam Springs Regional Hospital.

Along with these facilities, several affiliated outpatient sites and clinical practices will also be transferred to Freeman Health System as part of the acquisition.

The purchase price of $112 Mn may be adjusted at closing based on net working capital levels and the amount of finance leases that Freeman Health System agrees to assume. Leerink Partners has served as the exclusive financial advisor to Community Health Systems for the transaction.

The Arkansas hospitals are among the potential divestitures that Community Health Systems had previously discussed during its fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 earnings call, as well as in subsequent public statements.

The CHS has been evaluating strategic asset sales to streamline operations and strengthen its balance sheet while maintaining focus on core markets.

Headquartered in Tennessee, Community Health Systems operates one of the largest publicly traded hospital systems in the United States. Through its subsidiaries, CHS owns or leases 65 affiliated hospitals with more than 9,000 beds across 13 states and manages over 900 sites of care.

Freeman Health System, the buyer in the transaction, is a regional health system based in Missouri that operates hospitals and care facilities across the Midwest. By acquiring the Arkansas hospitals, Freeman is expected to expand its regional presence and strengthen access to hospital and outpatient services for communities in the northwestern part of the state.

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