Sanford, Fairview merger takes fire as target date nears

Multiple groups are trying to stop merger that health systems say will help communities they serve

Military history buffs will likely recall film from World War II of warplanes somehow, against all odds, flying, flying, flying through clouds of flak and machine gun fire toward their targets.

Improbably, the planes keep flying, despite all the fire.

It’s a good analogy for what Sanford Health is enduring as it pursues a merger with Minnesota’s Fairview Health Services.

The two health systems have faced withering criticism from multiple sides and interests as they pursue their merger, which was first announced in November. On Tuesday, Sanford CEO Bill Gassen and Fairview CEO James Hereford completed a listening session in Grand Rapids, Minnesota, the fourth of four sessions organized by Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, who has made it clear that he’s a skeptic of the merger.

It followed sessions in Bemidji, Saint Paul and Worthington.

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