Two Connecticut radiology companies have formed the Charter Radiology Network, a management services organization that will enable them to work together toward the Affordable Care Act’s “triple aim” of improved patient health and satisfaction at less cost.
Jefferson Radiology of East Hartford and Advanced Radiology Consultants of Shelton announced the cooperative venture Monday. Bob Evangelista, ARC’s marketing manager, and Rod Neaveill, Jefferson Radiology’s senior director of marketing and business development, say the initiative is not a merger but rather a separate business entity owned 50 percent by each company.
So far, the Charter Radiology Network is not yet staffed, but has three representatives from each company on a six-member board of directors, Evangelista said.
“We’re just starting out to discover what we can do – use our combined weight and be more efficient at what we do,” Evangelista said. “First initiatives [will involve] quality and safety.”
Dr. Ethan Foxman, president and CEO of Jefferson Radiology, said the new venture has the potential to improve the quality of patient care and access to imaging services across Connecticut by combining the best of each company’s efficencies and capabilities, while removing redundancies and unnecessary costs.
Clark Yoder, CEO of Advanced Radiology Consultants, says the new venture is a response to the public demand for improved healthcare access, safety, affordability and quality.
Charter Radiology Network’s initial efforts will focus on increasing quality and decreasing costs. Initiatives may include the integration of back-office management services, including traditional management services organization (MSO) tasks, billing operations, and IT infrastructure consolidation and augmentation.
Jefferson Radiology and Advanced Radiology Consultants clinical practices will continue to remain independent entities.
