Saint Luke's Health System Announces New Physician-Hospital Heart Care Business

Saint Luke's Health System in Kansas City, MO, has formalized a partnership with Cardiovascular Consultants, PA.

The new business is called Saint Luke's Cardiovascular Consultants and has 37 cardiologists who will provide services at Saint Luke's four metropolitan hospitals and outlying regional facilities. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

"This heightened level of integration with Cardiovascular Consultants strengthens our commitment to a delivery model that ensures that heart patients in our system receive the best care available in the region," said G. Richard Hastings, president and CEO of Saint Luke's. "This represents a significant step forward in completing our vision of a seamlessly integrated continuum of care that ensures clinical excellence to the patients we serve."

Kenneth C. Huber, MD, co-executive medical director of Saint Luke's Mid America Heart and Vascular Institute and CEO of Saint Luke's Cardiovascular Consultants, said the new entity leverages the strengths of both organizations. "This new model allows us to embrace these changes with a fully-integrated model that meets the needs of today and anticipates the needs of tomorrow," he said. "The goal is simple—deliver the most efficient, effective, and seamlessly integrated care possible."

Patients will see slight changes in billing practices, but otherwise all other aspects of patient care will remain the same.

Negotiations for the new business began in August 2009.

Saint Luke's Mid America Heart and Vascular Institute opened in 1982.

Cardiovascular Consultants became the primary provider of cardiovascular services for Saint Luke's Health System in 1999 when it was awarded a management agreement to provide strategic and operational oversight.