Covenant Health is a member of St. Joseph Health System, one of the most successful not-for-profit health systems in the United States. It was founded in 1998 through the merger of two of Lubbock's most venerable health care facilities, St. Mary of the Plains Hospital and Lubbock Methodist Hospital System. As the largest health care institution in the West Texas and Eastern New Mexico region, Covenant serves a 62-county area with a population of more than 1.2 million people.