Twelve additional health systems have joined Civica Rx, a nonprofit company formed by hospitals to manufacture their own generic medicines.
Here are five things to know:
1. In January 2018, Salt Lake City-based Intermountain Healthcare announced plans to form a nonprofit drug company to address the high costs and shortages of generic medications.
2. Intermountain said in September it had teamed up with the following six health systems to launch the company:
- HCA Healthcare (Nashville, Tenn.)
- Mayo Clinic (Rochester, Minn.)
- Catholic Health Initiatives (Englewood, Colo.)
- SSM Health (St. Louis)
- Trinity Health (Livonia, Mich.)
- Providence St. Joseph Health (Renton, Wash.)
3. Civica Rx will be governed by the seven health systems and three philanthropies.
4. Twelve additional health systems recently joined Civica Rx as founding members. The new members are:
- Advocate Aurora Health (Milwaukee and Downers Grove, Ill.)
- Allegheny Health Network (Pittsburgh)
- Baptist Health South Florida (Miami)
- Franciscan Alliance (Mishawaka, Ind.)
- Memorial Hermann Health System (Houston)
- NYU Langone (New York City)
- Ochsner Health System (New Orleans)
- Sanford Health (Sioux Falls, S.D.)
- St. Luke's University Health Network (Bethlehem, Pa.)
- Spectrum Health (Grand Rapids, Mich.)
- Steward Health Care (Dallas)
- UnityPoint Health (West Des Moines, Iowa)
5. The company's initial focus will be a group of 14 generic drugs that are administered in the hospital. Civica Rx is trying to become an FDA-approved manufacturer and will either directly manufacture generic drugs or subcontract manufacturing to other organizations.
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