Babylon will acquire Meritage's care management, claims processing, medical management, and population health programs functions and Meritage Health Plan.
Digital healthcare provider Babylon has acquired Meritage Medical Network, an independent physician network serving six counties in Northern California. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Under the agreement, Babylon will acquire Meritage's care management, claims processing, medical management, and population health programs functions and Meritage Health Plan, a subsidiary that holds a Restricted Knox Keene license.
The partners hope to couple Babylon's digital capabilities with Meritage's care cost management, a pairing that Babylon CEO Ali Parsa, MD, said "will allow for streamlined physician operations and more efficient end-to-end care delivery within Meritage's network, freeing providers up so they can focus on proactively managing patient care."
The Meritage acquisition comes on the heels of Babylon's recent investment in FirstChoice Medical Group, a Fresno-based independent physician association that serves nearly 50,000 Medicare Advantage and Medi-Cal members with a network of 180 primary care providers and 1,000 specialty providers. In March Babylon brought to California its Babylon 360 digital virtual care platform.
"In less than a year, Babylon has gone from being unknown in the U.S. to today managing the total cost of care for up to 90,000 lives," Parsa said. "That is why we are thrilled to be partnering with the incredible providers under Meritage Medical Network, as it allows us to bring the benefits of our Babylon 360 healthcare service to thousands more people across California and the U.S."
Meritage CEO Wojtek Nowak said partnering with Babylon gives the physician network "the latest healthcare technology along with new growth opportunities and significant resources we can now deploy in supporting our physicians and their patients."
Meritage serves a patients Madera, Fresno, Marin, Napa, Sonoma, and Solano counties.
“In less than a year, Babylon has gone from being unknown in the U.S. to today managing the total cost of care for up to 90,000 lives.”
Ali Parsa, MD, CEO, Babylon
John Commins is a content specialist and online news editor for HealthLeaders, a Simplify Compliance brand.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
The Meritage acquisition comes on the heels of Babylon's recent investment in FirstChoice Medical Group.
In March Babylon brought to California its Babylon 360 digital virtual care platform.
Meritage serves a patients Madera, Fresno, Marin, Napa, Sonoma, and Solano counties.