Legislation that authorizes the UM Board of Curators and MU Health Care to acquire, purchase or sell hospitals and medical facilities in 25 counties has been approved 8-3 by the Missouri House Special Committee on Rural Issues.
MU Health Care chief executive officer Ric Ransom spoke Saturday on 939 the Eagle’s “CEO Roundtable.” He supports House Bill 3170, which is sponsored by State Rep. Jeff Knight (R-Lebanon):
“As we look at other hospitals in that 25-county area that are struggling and interested in partnering or maybe becoming part of the health care system, more growth brings with it the risk that there would be an antitrust objection or hurdle to partnering or acquiring another hospital,” Ransom says.
Veteran State Rep. Kent Haden (R-Mexico) opposes the bill, saying he would rather see MU Health Care reopen closed hospitals in Mexico, Fulton and Boonville.
Columbia-based MU Health Care’s primary service area is where 85 percent of its in-patient admissions come from, according to Mr. Ransom:
“And when we look at where that 85 percent threshold comes from geographically, it’s that 25-county area that is immediately contiguous to Boone and Cole counties,” he says.
MU Health Care is the second-largest employer in Columbia/Boone County, according to 2025 statistics from Columbia Regional Economic Development Incorporated (REDI). Ransom says MU Health Care has about 8,300 employees, along with another 1,000 physicians.
You can listen to Fred Parry’s full interview with Mr. Ransom and with MU Health Care’s Laura Morris here.