http://www.ocregister.com/articles/health-720170-joseph-providence.html?utm_campaign=CHL%3A+Daily+Edition&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=30933831&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-84oHGPtH_oRfHq3swG_j9AVMRkPwDtHEOWMklCCFuqjT7IgwZsV-j9ABe7Am4TIq4TYpsIyOw5qZdD_63sNUO1GzmdVQ&_hsmi=30933831

St. Joseph Health and Providence Health and Services have received regulatory approval for a merger that will create the nation’s third-largest nonprofit health system, officials said Wednesday.

The California Attorney General’s office signed off on the deal between the two nonprofit Catholic hospital chains. The new entity, Providence St. Joseph Health, will include 16 St. Joseph hospitals, including five in Orange County, and 34 Providence hospitals, including six in Los Angeles County.