SOUTH CHARLESTON, W.VA. – Today, the Thomas Health Board of Directors is pleased to announce they have entered into a new management and clinical affiliation agreement with the WVU Health System. 
“This agreement is good for our hospitals, our employees, our patients, and the communities we serve: it will enable us to add a variety of specialties and subspecialties at our hospitals, thereby expanding our ability to care for the people in our community. This also establishes a pathway where we could become full members of the WVU Health System, which would give us greater access to resources necessary to remain a healthy and viable organization for years to come,” Thomas Health Board Chairman, Angela Mayfield commented. “Small community hospitals like Thomas Memorial and Saint Francis need partnerships with larger systems in order to survive the current health care climate. “
In addition to the new partnership with the WVU Health System, President and CEO Dan Lauffer announces his retirement from Thomas Health. “Serving as the health system’s Chief Executive Officer has been an incredible honor. The decision to create a partnership with WVU Health could not have come at a better time,” says Lauffer. “I am at a point where I want to pursue other projects and enjoy more time at home with my family.”
With Lauffer’s retirement, Albert L. Wright, Jr., president and CEO of the WVU Health System, will serve as the Health System’s interim president and CEO (while continuing to serve as the president and CEO of the WVU Health System) while Thomas Health conducts a search for Lauffer’s permanent successor.
“I’m excited to work with Dan, the board, and the leadership of the Thomas Health System during this transition,” Wright said. “Dan has done an outstanding job laying the groundwork to secure Thomas Health’s long-term success.”