Methodist Le Bonheur severs 50-year partnership with Medical Anesthesia Group

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) - Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare has severed its 50-year partnership with Medical Anesthesia Group (MAG) after disagreements on contract negotiations.

Tennessee state law prevents hospitals from employing anesthesiologists themselves, so health systems like Methodist Le Bonheur must contract with third-party providers to provide coverage.

According to a spokesperson with Methodist Le Bonheur, MAG alerted the healthcare group last summer that it would be unable to provide full anesthesia coverage for its system due to financial challenges and the loss of nearly half of its staff.

MAG released this statement on the split:

Official MAG Statement by Lydian Kennin on Scribd

MAG reportedly suggested that Methodist Le Bonheur employ contract anesthesiologists to meet patient needs at the healthcare group’s expense since it could not afford the cost despite being contractually obligated to do so.

Methodist Le Bonheur did hire temporary staff while also attempting to save the partnership. The healthcare group pitched the potential solution of adopting a “friendly PC” model where MAG could concentrate on clinical care exclusively while someone else handled its business operations.

According to the spokesperson, this plan was rejected in MAG’s hope to remain completely independent.

This allegedly left Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare with no choice but to find another provider for anesthesia.

In the months leading up to the contract ending on February 8, MAG’s continued struggles impacted scheduled surgeries, according to Methodist Le Bonheur. Many patients had to reschedule their surgeries or consider other options, according to the healthcare group.

Methodist Le Bonheur moved to a new provider, Somnia, on February 9.

According to the spokesperson for Methodist Le Bonheur, Somnia is a nationally renowned, independently owned, and physician-led anesthesia group based in New York and the first anesthesia-only company to be named a patient safety organization by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

This new anesthesia group is reportedly on board and working to ensure full anesthesia coverage at Methodist Le Bonheur’s facilities, something that was a persistent challenge during the last few months of the MAG partnership.

Action News 5 is still pending comment from Medical Anesthesia Group and Somnia.

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