Mass. alliance may be formed between three providers

Tufts Medical Center, New England Quality Care Alliance (NEQCA) and Vanguard Health Systems are negotiating the details of a partnership to provide expanded care in Massachusetts.

Over the next several months, the three organizations will determine the specific structure of the joint venture and the services it will provide, which may include enhanced chronic care and population health management, redesigned administrative services for physicians and hospitals, and insurance products, according to a Sept. 18 statement.

Braintree, Mass.-based NEQCA is the physician network of Tufts, an academic medical center in Boston, and Vanguard is a nationwide health system headquartered in Nashville, Tenn. The three organizations have teamed up before. The Vanguard-owned MetroWest Medical Center in Framingham, Mass., is an affiliate of Tufts and the MetroWest Accountable Healthcare Organization is a 165-member physician group belonging to NEQCA. All three organizations also sponsored Minuteman Health, a member-owned health plan that recently received an $88.5 million loan from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.