Hartford HealthCare and Israel have signed a formal agreement that officials say will lead to Israeli technologies and companies coming to Connecticut to develop and commercialize new products.
Leaders of HHC and the Israel Innovation Authority (IIA) — a government-funded agency whose investment activities are at the heart of the Middle Eastern country’s “Startup Nation” reputation — convened Thursday at Hartford Hospital to sign the memorandum of understanding.
Under the agreement, the $4 billion health system will get early access to new technologies, and Israeli companies will get access to HHC’s med-tech development expertise and nearly statewide network of hospitals and other healthcare facilities, which CEO Jeff Flaks refers to as HHC’s “sandbox.”
“The IIA is among the most advanced centers for innovation in the world,” Flaks said. “Our ambition is to make this region and our state the ‘startup state.’ ”
Flaks said the timing is perfect to build upon HHC’s approximately decade-long relationship with Israel, which began with a training program for Israeli paramedics.
“There has never been a better time than now,” Flaks said. ”Private equity and Wall Street are investing in health care at unprecedented levels.”
HHC becomes the third U.S. health system to sign an MOU with the IIA, which spent approximately $487 million in 2018 supporting companies and research projects, in sectors including health care, energy, agricultural technology and transportation, among others.
The other two systems are the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota and Jefferson University Health System in Philadelphia, Flaks said.
