Here’s the latest on the sale of Lourdes Health in Pasco

Another Tri-Cities hospital is a step closer to new ownership.

State regulators have approved the sale of Lourdes Health in Pasco to the Tennessee-based RCCH HealthCare Partners — the same company that recently purchased Trios Health in Kennewick.

The state Department of Health also approved Lourdes’ switch from nonprofit to for-profit.

The approval paves the way for the long-awaited sale to close.

Jeff Atwood, RCCH spokesman, said the aim is for the $21 million deal to be wrapped up by the end of the month.

“It’s been a long journey through this process and we’re excited to see it completed,” he said.

Lourdes dates to 1916, when nuns who were part of the Sisters of St. Joseph arrived by train to set up the area’s first hospital.

Lourdes will retain its Catholic identity when it changes hands to RCCH.

Because of that, it won’t be part of the public-private partnership between RCCH and UW Medicine to own and run community hospitals in Washington, Idaho and Alaska. Trios Health is part of that joint venture.

The review and sale of Trios Health happened quickly because of that system’s precarious finances. Lourdes’ process moved more slowly.

Lourdes began looking for a new partner about three years ago after its owner, Ascension, shifted focus to larger metro areas. Capella Healthcare, which later merged with RegionalCare Hospital Partners to become RCCH, stepped up as a buyer.

The letters in RCCH are a nod to those pre-merger names.

All of Lourdes’ roughly 900 employees will be asked to stay on when the sale happens, officials have said.

The sale covers both Lourdes Medical Center and Lourdes Counseling Center.

This story was originally published August 7, 2018 at 6:25 PM.