Care New England, Southcoast Health exploring affiliation

(Updated 12:40 p.m.)
PROVIDENCE – Care New England Health System and Southcoast Health System Inc. have agreed to explore a potential affiliation to create a new nonprofit parent organization overseeing both systems.
The partnership would create one of New England’s largest nonprofit, community-based health care systems, according to a news release from the two organizations.
Care New England, parent organization of Butler Hospital, Kent Hospital, Memorial Hospital of Rhode Island and Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island, said its board and senior leaders conducted an “extensive request for proposals” for a partner and unanimously chose Southcoast, which also operates four hospitals.
A total of four proposals were received.
In addition to Southcoast, proposals were submitted by Lifespan; Prospect Medical Holdings, owner of CharterCARE Health Partners; and Partners Healthcare, which includes Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital, according to Dennis D. Keefe, president and CEO of Care New England.
The release said that Care New England evaluated potential partners on clinical program quality, population health management, physician enterprise, academic focus, governance and corporate infrastructure, capital commitment, community benefit and mission alignment.
The two organizations each have signed a letter of intent to start discussions about forming the new parent organization, according to the joint announcement from Keefe and Keith A. Hovan, president and CEO of Southcoast.
Once the organizations agree to partnership terms, they can move forward with needed approvals, including state and federal regulatory processes, the release said.

In a telephone interview, Keefe said if everything goes well, the two organizations could be operating as one as early as six months from now. However, he said the entire process could take a year.
The new organization would be governed by a new board of directors, Keefe said.
Membership on the board would be divided equally between Care New England and Southcoast. That board then would select a chairman and CEO for the new system, Keefe said.
Keefe said he does not expect the partnership to significantly affect employment at both systems, adding there is a possibility new jobs could be created. Southcoast currently has 7,236 employees, and CNE has 8,637 employees.

Total revenue for the combined system is estimated at more than $2 billion, Keefe said.

If the partnership goes forward, the new organization would feature eight hospitals, a network of ambulatory sites, two accountable care organizations and more than 1,700 physicians and providers. It also would continue relationships that both Care New England and Southcoast have with The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University.

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Keefe said the potential partnership represents another way that Care New England is trying to strengthen its organization, Keefe said.

“We believe the complementary services of Southcoast and the geographic span of their service area will enable us to advance the high-quality, high-value continuum of care we have been building,” Keefe said in a statement. “We already see the common ties to community and an unwavering commitment to mission and values both our organizations share, and we look forward to further study of the partnership potentials that could come to fruition in a new vision for health care delivery for our region.”

Said Hovan, “We believe that Southcoast can be a strong and complementary partner for Care New England, and that together our respective organizations could form the foundation of a highly competitive, community-based and value-driven integrated health care system throughout southern New England.”

Care New England also is the parent organization of the VNA of Care New England, The Providence Center, CNE Wellness Center and Integra, a certified ACO created in collaboration with the Rhode Island Primary Care Physicians Corp.

Southcoast Health System includes Charlton Memorial Hospital in Fall River, St. Luke’s Hospital in New Bedford and Tobey Hospital in Wareham, as well as Southcoast Behavioral Health in Dartmouth, a joint venture hospital with Acadia Healthcare.

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