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UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) has closed a deal to acquire the New York-based physician group Crystal Run Healthcare, highlighting the rising interest of managed care players toward primary care providers.
Crystal Run operates a network of more than 400 physicians across Hudson Valley and the lower Catskill region covering nearly 50 medical specialties, including primary care.
While neither company publicly disclosed the transaction, Dr. Hal Teitelbaum, chief executive of Crystal Run, informed employees that his organization became part of UnitedHealth’s (UNH) Optum unit effective Feb. 22.
“We will join Optum as part of their Tri-State Team, and will no longer have physician owners,” Dr. Teitelbaum said in an email to employees, according to Mid-Hudson News, one of the first outlets to report the transaction.
“Crystal Run has long recognized that the fee-for-service reimbursement model is broken, and we committed to transition to value-based care focused on the quadruple aim,” Dr. Teitelbaum added.
After rival CVS Health (CVS) agreed to acquire the home healthcare provider Signify Health for nearly $8B in September, UnitedHealth (UNH) was often cited as a potential bidder for Cano Health (CANO), a Miami, Florida-based primary care provider.