Former Schuylkill County administrator William J. Reppy is the new president of Lehigh Valley Hospital-Schuylkill.

The hospital is a merger of Lehigh Valley Health Network and Schuylkill Health System, the former good Samaritan and Pottsville hospitals, which joined in 2008.The boards of both Lehigh Valley and Schuylkill Health in April approved the merger, which has since been approved by regulatory agencies.In addition to naming Reppy, 55, of Orwigsburg, as president, officials on Thursday also announced the new names for the hospital buildings: Lehigh Valley Hospital-Schuylkill East Norwegian Street, and Lehigh Valley Hospital-Schuylkill South Jackson Street.Reppy will step down from his current post as vice president of operations/corporate safety officer at Lehigh Valley Hospital-Hazleton to take the reins at Lehigh Valley Hospital-Schuylkill as of today."Our pledge to the people of this community is that we will always listen to you," Reppy said. "As we move forward, we will work to provide the services you need most, and we will always remember that we are here to serve you. By working together, we will change the health care landscape in Schuylkill County."Marc H. Lory, who was appointed interim president and chief executive officer at Schuylkill Health System in October 2014, will serve as a consultant to Reppy into October.Schuylkill County commissioners in January 2005 hired Reppy as administrator. He had been director of the radiology and medical diagnostic services at good Samaritan Regional Medical Center since 1990.In April 2007, Reppy left the administrator job to take a position as Director of Radiology for the Greater Hazleton Health Alliance.The merger means better health care for Schuylkill County residents, officials said."This new arrangement with a longtime partner allows Lehigh Valley Health Network to grow services, improve technology and recruit physicians and other medical professionals to the Pottsville and Schuylkill County community," said Lehigh Valley Health Network's president and chief executive officer Brian A. Nester."We intend to grow what was an already successful partnership that included teleburn and telestroke services into a cohesive health network that gives people access close to home," he said.Nester said several thousand people already travel from Schuylkill County to Lehigh Valley Health Network for specialized medical services each year.Reppy said as part of campus integration, services such as intensive care, inpatient medical-surgical units, operating rooms, pediatrics and diagnostic imaging will be provided at the East Norwegian Street campus. An updated emergency department also is under construction at the East Norwegian Street campus.He said adult and adolescent behavioral health, as well as obstetrics will remain at the South Jackson Street campus.Reppy said he expects integration of the hospital campuses to be completed by late fall. However, the overall plan to integrate two organizations will take time. "It is a complex process that cannot be done with the flip of a switch," he said.