Two Wisconsin Health Systems that Merged in 2022 Announce New Name

Wednesday, May 1st, 2024 -- 8:00 AM

(Joe Schulz, Wisconsin Public Radio) Two Wisconsin health systems that merged in 2022 announced a new name for their organization on Tuesday. 

According to Joe Schulz with Wisconsin Public Radio, Bellin Health and Gundersen Health System, which initially kept their respective names, will transition toward operating as Emplify Health.

“We amplify empathy,” said Dr. Scott Rathgaber, chief executive officer of the merged health system. “It’s who Bellin and Gundersen have been for well over a century.”

Bellin, based in Green Bay, and Gundersen, based in La Crosse, operate 11 hospitals across Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota and Michigan with roughly 15,000 employees. Rathgaber said the name change will not happen overnight and could take several years.

“We’ll have a plan over the next ensuing several months to years on how we’ll actually change out,” he said. “We’ll let folks know when we expect to be actually using those names. But it’s not anything urgent or impending.” The Bellin Health Foundation and Gundersen Medical Foundation will keep their existing names and will remain separate, Rathgaber said.

“We do believe that it’s important to continue to carry both those foundations so that people know that when they send their resources to the organization, they will be used in the communities where they live and work,” he said.

He added that the name change transition will not affect patients, who will continue to see their regular providers at the same locations.

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