The urge to merge.

For many stand-alone hospitals, a merger, partnership, or affiliation may be the only option to access scale and remain viable in the nation's emerging new healthcare delivery system. These organizations can consider many options for affiliation, including traditional options such as affiliation with regional academic medical centers, a merger or takeover to become the corporate member of a large system, and acquisition by a for-profit system. Emerging options include mergers for scale and access to capital, private-equity transactions, and arrangements involving insurance vertical integration.