Twin Cities Orthopedics and three other private practices are partnering to form the Infinite Health Collaborative, a group designed to preserve physicians' autonomy in the face of industry consolidation, the StarTribune reports.
Owen O'Neill, MD, an orthopedic surgeon at Edina, Minn.-based Twin Cities Orthopedics, is one of the collaborative's owners. He told the StarTribune about the idea behind the Infinite Health Collaborative and what the partnership will look like.
Five takeaways:
1. The collaborative was established on the belief that "independent practices and independent physicians are really at the center of patient care," Dr. O'Neill said. "And ultimately, it's in partnership with patients that we can help drive value in healthcare."
2. The collaboration will include two primary care practices and an OB-GYN practice, which will all integrate into a larger entity. Physicians will remain partners and owners in the new business.
3. Dr. O'Neill estimated more than 160 independent physicians will be part of the collaborative upon launch.
4. The partners decided not to involve any private equity funding because "it's taking money out of a system designed for patient care," Dr. O'Neill said. No insurers are investing in the venture, either.
5. The larger entity will give physicians an economy of scale that smaller groups don't have on their own, according to Dr. O'Neill. "It's very difficult for smaller groups, particularly if they're independent, to manage, I would say, the necessary government regulations in terms of electronic medical records, IT, those types of things," he said.
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