Dive Brief:
- Last week, Partners HealthCare, the largest health system in Massachusetts, acquired Harbor Medical Associates, a 70-physician group. The acquisition will add around 60,000 patients to its network.
- The deal was completed despite warnings from the MA attorney general that it would raise medical costs without benefiting consumers.
- Partners has promised that price increases for the newly-acquired group will be limited to the rate of inflation for approximately five years.
Dive Insight:
The Health Policy Commission (HPC), an independent state agency that develops policy to reduce healthcare cost growth and improve the quality of patient care, said the deal could potentially add $8 million to medical spending if the physicians at Harbor Medical Associates are paid at the same rates as other Partners physicians. They also said there could be additional costs if the group begins sending more patient referrals to higher-cost hospitals that are owned by Partners. "Partners is proposing steps to address some of our concerns, and the HPC will continue to assess and monitor their commitments," Stuart Altman, chairman of the commission, said in a statement.