Intermountain Healthcare and UCHealth are forming a new partnership to develop a clinically integrated network (CIN) with comprehensive patient resources. The venture will bring together 700 primary care physicians and hundreds of clinics and hospitals, with support from specialists throughout Colorado. In addition, the partnership will help bring a new health insurance option to Coloradans.
The CIN aims to accelerate the transition to value-based care in the state by improving care coordination and providing higher-quality health care for more than 300,000 residents at lower costs.
“For many years, UCHealth has focused on reducing healthcare costs, lowering insurance premiums, and improving the lives of our patients. We are excited to partner with Intermountain to advance these goals and to give Coloradans a new option for their health insurance that prioritizes value-based care,” said Elizabeth B. Concordia, UCHealth president and CEO. “Together, we will help improve the overall health of the communities we serve.”
Initially, Intermountain Healthcare’s Colorado Quality Care Network and UCHealth’s Coordinated Care Colorado network will be brought together to create the joint venture CIN; other affiliated Colorado CINs/provider networks may join the venture in the future.
The partnership will also support health insurance products and programs offered through SelectHealth, which will provide Medicare Advantage and Individual ACA (Affordable Care Act) plans, pending regulatory approval, beginning on January 1, 2024. SelectHealth is a nonprofit health plan serving more than one million members in Utah, Idaho, and Nevada. SelectHealth is a subsidiary of Intermountain Healthcare.
“The CIN will treat SelectHealth just like all payers here. Any plan that aligns with the CIN’s goals of ensuring a better patient experience and health outcomes while lowering costs will be considered a valuable partner,” said Mark Korth, Intermountain Healthcare’s regional president. “UCHealth and Intermountain look forward to the next evolution to our value-based care approach.”
“UCHealth’s clinically integrated network, our employees, and the dedicated providers we work with have made significant strides in recent years, helping patients receive preventive care services, address chronic conditions, and utilize the most appropriate care. We have seen exciting results, including cost savings and improvements in our patients’ health,” said Michael A. Cancro, president of UCHealth Coordinated Care Colorado and chief strategy officer. “Together with Intermountain, these results will multiply, providing benefits for our entire state.”
Though UCHealth and Intermountain are creating a new CIN partnership, the two health systems will remain separate and independent, and the CIN will be operated as an independent company. The two organizations expect their current contracts and relationships with insurance plans to continue as they work with all providers to improve quality and reduce costs.
About Intermountain Healthcare
Intermountain Healthcare operates multiple clinics and hospitals in Colorado and six other western states. Intermountain is a nonprofit system of 33 hospitals, 385 clinics, medical groups with some 3,900 employed physicians and advanced care providers, a health plans division called SelectHealth with more than one million members, and other health services. To help people live the healthiest lives possible, Intermountain is committed to improving community health and is widely recognized as a leader in transforming healthcare by consistently using evidence-based best practices to deliver high-quality outcomes at sustainable costs.
About UCHealth
UCHealth is an innovative, nonprofit health system that delivers the highest quality medical care with an excellent patient experience. UCHealth includes 29,000 employees, 12 acute-care hospitals, and hundreds of physicians across Colorado, southern Wyoming, and western Nebraska. With University of Colorado Hospital on the CU Anschutz Medical Campus as its academic anchor and the only adult academic medical center in the region, UCHealth is dedicated to providing unmatched patient care in the Rocky Mountain West. Offering more than 150 clinic locations, UCHealth provides extensive community benefits and pushes the boundaries of medicine through advanced treatments and clinical trials, improving health through innovation.