A Five-Year Lookback: Hendrick Health’s Transformational Transaction

By Brad Holland, Hendrick Health President and CEO

Five years ago, Hendrick Health made a bold decision that reshaped local health care for our community. We chose to keep care local, to keep it nonprofit and to keep it ours. Today, that choice has strengthened our hospitals, expanded access to care and ensured that West Texans continue to receive state-of-the-art medicine close to home.

From September 2024 to 2025, Hendrick Health celebrated 100 years of delivering care to Abilene. Our health care is for you, and nonprofit health care keeps you at the center. As a hospital CEO, I’ve seen firsthand how decisions made at the top ripple out to affect patients, families and our entire community. Five years after Hendrick Health acquired Hendrick Medical Center South and Hendrick Medical Center Brownwood, I want to share why community-owned, locally managed, not-for-profit health care matters, especially for Abilene, Brownwood and West Central Texas.

When health care is run by for-profit corporations, every decision must answer to shareholders. Profits are taken out, and dollars leave the community to flow into boardrooms often hundreds or thousands of miles away. In that model, health care becomes a commodity that’s bought, sold and managed for a return on investment.

However, we believe health care should be different.

As a non-profit, mission-driven health system, every dollar is reinvested into our hospitals, equipment, technology and people. That means when you pay a hospital bill, those resources don’t vanish into Wall Street or a corporate office out of state or even out of town; they stay in Abilene and Brownwood to strengthen our workforce, expand services and improve care.

Because we are locally governed, we are accountable to our community, which includes 24 surrounding counties that make up 9 percent of the state’s landmass. Our measures of success are healthier people, stronger families and a safer, more vibrant West Texas. That’s why we provide charity care, invest heavily in community programs and other nonprofits, and offer vital services that may not always be profitable.

As our population grew and health care needs intensified, we faced a choice in 2019: expand alone or build together. We were fortunate to have two operating hospitals that had been for sale right in our backyard. The two driving reasons for acquiring Abilene Regional Medical Center (ARMC) and Brownwood Regional Medical Center (BRMC) were clear — to extend our mission and expand access to care. Hendrick was already at capacity, but needed more caregivers, facility space and equipment to meet growing needs.

Hendrick Medical Center South and Hendrick Medical Center Brownwood officially joined Hendrick Health on October 27, 2020, during the pandemic that had a devastating financial impact on hospitals nationwide. Hendrick provided stability to the former ARMC and BRMC campuses, investing millions in caregivers, facility updates, repairs, technology and equipment. Adding these two hospitals into Hendrick Health allowed us to combine resources and unify care, close to home. And because we are a locally governed, nonprofit health system, those resources serve West Texas, not distant shareholders.

In the past five years, we have expanded numerous services and, in partnership with our expert providers, brought new procedures, treatments and research trials to our community. This year alone, more than 500 residents were enrolled in a clinical trial through Hendrick Center for Research. From clot-busting technology to treat ischemic strokes to preventive lung cancer screenings augmented by AI, Hendrick Health ensures that state-of-the-art care is accessible for West Texans. Every investment since is rooted in the same goals to extend our mission and expand access to care.

This progress would not have been possible without the people of Hendrick. Our doctors drive the care and innovation. Since acquisition, 119 new doctors have been recruited to practice in our communities. The 5,600 individuals who wear a Hendrick badge are your neighbors, coaches, church members and community volunteers. At the time of acquisition, Hendrick Health onboarded the former ARMC and BRMC employees and insourced many out-of-state jobs back to our corner of Texas. Since then, approximately 1,100 additional team members have joined Hendrick Health.

It all comes back to serving West Central Texas. Hendrick remains locally owned, managed and governed by people who live and work right here. With transparency, accountability and a century-long commitment to excellence, we continue to extend our mission and expand access to care for the next generation.

Together, we’ve built a stronger foundation for care in West Texas, and our next century of service has only just begun. Thank you for trusting us to serve you.