Dive Brief:
- A new partnership between the University of Maryland Medical System and nearby St. Agnes Healthcare is part of a trend spurred on by the Affordable Care Act’s mandate for improved health care and expanded access.
- The Baltimore Sun reports the partnership has been on the table for years, and now that it is in place, the two hospitals can collaborate to improve patient care, combine services, cut costs, and save money.
- The University of Maryland Medical System is made up of 12 hospitals, and the latest partnership comes after a merger in 2009 and an acquisition in 2012.
Dive Insight:
University health care systems have been as affected by the Affordable Care Act as any other hospital system. The act forces hospital administrators to drive down costs, focus on preventative care, serve more people, and maintain a level of affordability. These demands have provided motivation for innovation and have spurred on consolidation across the industry in all corners of the country.
Moody’s Investors Service expects the pace of mergers among individual colleges and universities to speed up in the coming years as these institutions seek alternatives to closure. Pressures in both the higher education and medical fields are encouraging collaboration and collective innovation for survival.