The Cleveland Clinic and five other Ohio health systems announced they will explore creating a statewide network under a newly formed company.
The Midwest Health Collaborative includes the 11-hospital Cleveland Clinic, Aultman Hospital, Canton; 10-hospital OhioHealth, Columbus; five-hospital Premier Health, Dayton; eight-hospital ProMedica, Toledo; and four-hospital TriHealth, Cincinnati.
Under the agreement, the systems would remain independent and each would appoint one board member to the new company, which will work in coming months to develop a business plan for a statewide provider network, said Ann Huston, chief strategy officer for the Cleveland Clinic.
Huston said the network could serve its own employees, state workers or other populations the member organizations identify as they develop the business model. The collaborative might also expand to accept new members, and it is expected to recruit staff, she said.
The half-dozen health systems will also use the partnership to find ways to reduce operating expenses such as supply costs, as well as identify effective practices they can share to improve performance.
The announcement comes months after Ascension Health and Trinity Health formed a clinically integrated network that spans most of the state.
Follow Melanie Evans on Twitter: @MHmevans
