Boston-based Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Lahey Health in Burlington, Mass., officially merge March 1 to become Beth Israel Lahey Health, a system with 13 hospitals and 4,300 physicians across Massachusetts, according to WBUR.
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health and state attorney general approved the merger under conditions, including limited annual price increases over the next seven years, maintaining $71.6 million in commitments to support healthcare services for low-income and underserved communities statewide, and good faith efforts to enroll all licensed providers in MassHealth — the state's Medicaid and children's health insurance program — within three years.
Maura Healey, attorney general of Massachusetts, is negotiating with Beth Israel Lahey to appoint an independent monitor to track adherence to these conditions.
"In five years time, if patients and their families tell us that we have made a difference in their lives, then we will have been wildly successful as far as I'm concerned," said Kevin Tabb, MD, president and CEO of Beth Israel Lahey Health.
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