Minneapolis-based University of Minnesota has made an offer to purchase Fairview (Minn.) Health Services’ stake in an outpatient joint venture, according to a March 12 report from The Minnesota Star Tribune.
The venture operates out of an outpatient clinic and surgery center on a campus belonging to the University of Minnesota.
The university and Fairview both operate under the M Health Fairview umbrella. The joint venture is currently 50% owned by Fairview and 50% by University of Minnesota Physicians, a nonprofit that runs the outpatient practice on behalf of university physicians.
The university owns the building, which is valued at $160 million, while the joint venture leases a portion of the facility.
The university distributed a March 12 memo sharing its interest to buy the venture, but Fairview is requesting the dismissal of $100 million in debt.
“The [joint venture] is managed by UMP and has operated at a financial loss for years,” Fairview told the Tribune. “To date, Fairview is owed more than $100 million for supplies and services provided to the CSC JV.”
Fairview acquired University of Minnesota Medical Center in a 1997 financial bailout, and has since been involved in several battles, including in 2022 when the university accused Fairview of mismanagement.
Fairview is the largest donor to the university’s physician training programs, and 70% of physicians practicing in the state train at the university, according to the report.
The two facilities have gone through several proposals to restructure and change ownership in the last 10 years.
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