Intermountain Sells GPO as It Sharpens Focus

Intermountain Healthcare has agreed to sell its Intalere group purchasing organization (formerly Amerinet) to Vizient, a GPO that also provides data analytics and performance-improvement insights to health systems.

The deal will support Vizient’s mission to strengthen members’ delivery of high-value care by aligning cost, quality and overall supply chain performance and will expand Vizient’s footprint in the non-acute care supply business and in smaller and rural acute care facilities. The sale also gives Intermountain the opportunity to join Vizient’s pharmacy program to reduce costs and minimize drug shortages.

The sale is also significant because it will help Vizient move from consulting with health care organizations to more actively managing supply chain business for providers. Last year, Vizient took a similarly expansive step to provide more holistic supply chain services to health care organizations when it signed a deal with CivicaRx to monitor drug costs and availability for the nonprofit organization, which was formed to reduce and prevent drug shortages.