Sunday, July 19, 1998
Health Alliance of Greater Cincinnati: Founded in February 1994 as a joint-management agreement between the Christ and University hospitals, it has grown to include the Jewish and St. Luke hospitals. Last month, Fort Hamilton-Hughes Memorial Hospital agreed to join the alliance in a deal that awaits final board approvals. The Health Alliance is the hospital arm of Alliance Partners, an umbrella group that negotiates managed-care contracts for the hospitals and a physician organization called Alliance Physicians & Surgeons. Including Fort Hamilton-Hughes, the alliance would have six hospitals with a combined 653,616 adjusted patient days*.
TriHealth: Formed in January 1995 as a partnership of Good Samaritan, Bethesda Oak and Bethesda North hospitals. Much like the Health Alliance, the TriHealth hospitals have a combined management structure, share operating revenues and jointly plan budgets and strategic planning. However, TriHealth has preferred less formal relationships with local physician groups. The three hospitals have a combined 323,957 adjusted patient days.
Catholic Health Partners: St. Elizabeth Medical Center, with hospitals in Covington, Edgewood and Williamstown, Ky., has agreed to join CHP in a deal that could close in August. The Cincinnati-based, multistate CHP network already includes the four Mercy hospitals in Anderson Township, Hamilton, Fairfield and Batavia. CHP also is negotiating with the New York-based parent company of the Franciscan Health System of the Ohio Valley, which includes hospitals in Mount Airy and Westwood plus a hospital in Dayton, Ohio. If all the plans work out, CHP would become the second-largest hospital group in town. However, this group would be less structured than either the Health Alliance or TriHealth. There would be no central or combined management and no direct revenue sharing. But the member hospitals could jointly negotiate managed-care contracts, refinance long-term debt, collaborate on joint ventures and look for ways to share common services. If all three groups join CHP, they would have nine local hospitals with a combined 517,403 adjusted patient days, plus another hospital in Dayton.
*Adjusted patient days: An industry measure compiled by the Greater Cincinnati Health Council that combines inpatient and outpatient hospital activity. Figures are based on 1996 data, the most recent available.
