For now, the partnership will stick close to the mission of its two founding organizations, improving on products and services they already offer to members, as well as to clients outside their respective states.
Hospitals are looking for services that help them sustain their existing business models, said Herb Kuhn, president and CEO of the Missouri association. But they're also looking for products that will help them do things differently, and better, such as reducing readmissions and hospital-acquired infections. “We're getting a lot of interest in those products going forward,” he said.
Calculating risk, for now, is not on the service menu, Kuhn said, but, “we don't see any barriers in terms of what we're going to be involved in” as the market demands.
IHA President and CEO Maryjane Wurth said the vision is to develop a range of tools and analytics that will include risk management and population health.
Combined, the two associations represent 370 member hospitals, but serve 1,400 hospitals, health systems, state hospital associations, ambulatory surgical centers and state data agencies nationwide.
Follow Joseph Conn on Twitter: @MHJConn
