TENET/MEDPARTNERS: FORM HEALTH NETWORK IN CALIFORNIA

      Tenet Healthcare Corp., "the nation's second largest
 hospital company," and MedPartners Inc., "the nation's largest
 physician-practice management company," have agreed to form a
 health care network in Southern California, WALL STREET JOURNAL
 reports.  The network will include 33 hospitals, more than 4,000
 physicians and will serve more than 1 million members.  Industry
 analysts said that the "arrangement is one of the most visible
 examples so far of how major managed care players are attempting
 to create big integrated networks that take advantage of
 economies of scale to gain market share."  Terms of the deal were
 not disclosed; however, Santa Barbara, CA, based-Tenet said it
 would receive $80 million in annual revenue from Birmingham, AL-
 based MedPartners.  As part of the agreement, MedPartners will
 sell its 99-bed Pioneer Hospital in Artesia, CA, to Tenet.
      BIGGER IS BETTER:  JOURNAL reports that the agreement means
 that members of Southern California HMOs who are treated by
 MedPartners' physicians "will now have a choice of any Tenet
 hospital in Los Angeles and Orange counties."  The 10-year deal
 "is intended to attract more patients to the companies by making
 them more competitive in contracting with HMOs."  Tenet Chair and
 CEO Jeffrey Barbakow said, "The alliance incorporates many of the
 innovations we see on the health care horizon."  A spokesperson
 for MedPartners said that the deal "is probably more extensive
 than anything we would have at any other hospital company at this
 point."  But "the agreement raised some concerns that smaller,
 nonprofit hospitals could lose out," JOURNAL reports.  Jamie
 Court, a health care consumer advocate, said, "This deal and its
 long term ramifications shouldn't go without scrutiny from state
 regulators."  The companies said they are considering extending
 their relationship "into other parts of California and other
 states" (Rundle, 4/10).