The Sconi

Black River Memorial Hospital and Krohn Clinic have announced their unification to form Black River Health, effective December 30, 2024. This merger aims to enhance healthcare services in Jackson County and surrounding areas.

Carl Selvick, President and CEO of BRMH, stated, “We’re thrilled to introduce Black River Health. This partnership unites the strengths of both organizations, driven by a shared vision of delivering sustainable, high-quality care close to home. It is a bold move to meet the evolving health needs of our community.”

The decision comes as a response to the growing health challenges in Jackson County, which currently lags behind other counties in Wisconsin regarding health outcomes. The new entity will focus on providing local, high-quality healthcare.

Dr. Michelle Clark-Forsting, President and Administrator of Krohn Clinic, expressed optimism about the merger's potential benefits: “The future of healthcare in Jackson County is promising. Both BRMH and Krohn Clinic are strong on their own, but together we can do even more to improve the health of our community.”

Black River Health plans to attract new providers and offer more specialties while maintaining the independence of each organization. Leadership will be shared between Dr. Clark-Forsting as Chief Physician Executive and Mr. Selvick as Chief Executive Officer.

The collaboration builds on a long-standing partnership dating back to 1963 when Krohn Clinic donated the hospital that BRMH now operates as a private non-profit entity.

Krohn Clinic has been serving residents since 1932 as an independent multi-specialty primary care clinic. BRMH has been incorporated since 1966 as a non-profit medical facility with a 25-bed critical access hospital offering various outpatient specialties.

With this merger, Black River Health aims to continue improving healthcare accessibility for its community.