Hospital giant to expand homegrown outpatient imaging chain that offers flat-rate MR and CT
Hospital giant Intermountain Health is expanding its homegrown outpatient imaging to a major city thousands of miles from its headquarters, according to recently filed documents.
First launched in 2021, Tellica Imaging has aimed to capitalize on the industry’s shift away from hospitals to less costly freestanding sites. It offers MRI ($550) and CT ($350) at flat-rate prices that fall well below the cost at other hospital-based settings.
Tellica Imaging now operates seven locations across Idaho and Intermountain’s home state of Utah with plans to open several more in Massachusetts this year. To do so, the imaging group is entering a partnership with Boston-based BMC Health System.
“Tellica does not anticipate the proposed joint venture will negatively impact reimbursement rates, care referral patterns, access to needed services or quality of care,” Intermountain wrote in documents submitted to the state March 7. “High quality imaging services will be provided in a cost-effective manner in new outpatient site(s) that adhere to industry leading performance standards,” it added later.
Intermountain and BMC could not immediately provide comment on the venture Thursday.
Such applications must be summitted to Massachusetts authorities by any provider organization with $25 million or more in net patient revenue in the preceding fiscal year that is proposing a “material change” in the state. The commission is unable to block the JV deal but can refer its findings to the attorney general’s office or Massachusetts Department of Public Health.
BMC Health System, through its subsidiary entity Boston Medical Center Corp., operates a 616-bed safety net academic hospital serving adults and children. It is the primary teaching hospital of Boston University’s school of medicine and also operates an inpatient satellite and several outpatient locations throughout greater Boston, according to its application.
Joint venture Tellica Imaging–Massachusetts LLC plans to offer community-based MR and CT at up to three new clinic cites in eastern Massachusetts. Currently, BMC Health System offers such services solely at the hospital’s main campus. Tellica also has locations “soon to open” in New Hampshire, according to documents shared with the state.
Intermountain is a nonprofit health system with 30-plus hospitals and 385 clinic sites. Leaders explained their thinking behind launching Tellica Imaging three years ago.
“While hospital-based imaging services remain an important part of the care process—particularly in emergency situations and when complex imaging services are needed—many patients prefer to access CT scan and MRI imaging services in convenient settings closer to home,” Nannette Berensen, MBA, VP and chief operating officer of Clinical Shared Services for Intermountain as of 2021, said at the time.
Intermountain and Tellica also inked a 10-year value partnership with Siemens Healthineers in 2022.
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.