HUNTINGTON PROVIDER GROUP: Shutters San Fernando Valley Unit
The financially beleaguered Southern California Independent Practice Association, operated by the Huntington Provider Group, the state's largest IPA, will shutter its services in the San Fernando Valley on Aug. 31, the Los Angeles Times reports. The failure of the 400-doctor association, which works mostly through West Hills Hospital and Northridge Hospital Medical Center, will leave 70,000 members scrambling to find new physicians. "This is a difficult environment," said Huntington President Dr. Barton Wald, "We're all struggling to keep our health care costs in line with revenue." The failure of the division "illustrates a key aspect of growing financial troubles of managed care in California" -- the vulnerability of IPAs "to the financial troubles rocking the managed care industry," as illustrated by the failure of MedPartners Provider Network Inc. (Bernstein, 5/8).
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