Arizona's four largest health systems have formed an alliance, called Health System Alliance of Arizona, to advocate for public policy that represents the state's healthcare industry.
The four health systems included in the alliance are Banner Health, Dignity Health, HonorHealth and Tenet Healthcare Corp., according to a news release.
None of the health systems are part of the Arizona Hospital and Healthcare Association, the statewide association for health systems.
Banner Health and Dignity Health, along with Phoenix-based Abrazo Health Care, together left the association in 2012, citing the desire to work together on issues of “mutual concern,” Modern Healthcare reported.
Tenet and HonorHealth also left the association.
Jennifer Carusetta, executive director of the alliance, said the four systems in the alliance are all large, multiprovider systems with similar interests. The Arizona Hospital and Healthcare Association represents comparatively smaller health systems with different interests.
“We certainly look forward to the opportunity to work with the hospital association, but from our perspective they are two distinct organizations,” Carusetta said. “Every one of the systems in our alliance represents multiprovider systems.”
Together, the four health systems employ 65,000.
For eight years, Carusetta was the legislative liaison for the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System, the state's Medicaid agency.
Banner CEO Peter Fine will serve as chairman of the alliance.
The directors will be Reginald Ballantyne, Tenet Healthcare's senior strategic adviser; Linda Hunt, CEO of Dignity Health's Arizona Service Area; and Tom Sadvary, CEO of HonorHealth.
The alliance went into effect in December.
