JPMorgan Chase is forging a new path in the healthcare space following the downfall of Haven Healthcare, its recent joint venture with Amazon and Berkshire Hathaway.
The new initiative, Morgan Health, aims to improve the quality, efficiency and equity of employer-sponsored healthcare for the financial company’s 165,000 U.S. employees.
Dan Mendelson will lead as CEO of Morgan Health, reporting to Peter Scher, vice chairman of JPMorgan Chase & Co. and a member of the firm’s operating committee. Mendelson is a former operating partner at Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe, a healthcare and technology private equity firm, and founder and CEO of Avalere Health LLC, a healthcare advisory firm.
“We need to try to make the U.S. healthcare system work better,” said Jamie Dimon, chairman and CEO, JPMorgan Chase. “We have the best healthcare in the world in terms of doctors, hospitals, pharmaceutical and medical device companies, but we certainly do not have the best outcomes. Many of our problems have been around for a long time and are not aging well. There are ways we can make significant improvements and we intend to take a disciplined approach to solving some of these issues in a meaningful way.”
The new effort to improve healthcare comes nearly six months after Haven dissolved. The venture only lasted about three years after a high-profile launch positioned its purpose as setting out to transform healthcare for 1.5 million workers. While the organization explored many healthcare innovations and solutions, it ended up a casualty of U.S. healthcare's complexity. Each of the three companies vowed to find other healthcare solutions through individual initiatives.
Morgan Health will work with healthcare experts and partners to make healthcare improvements. So far, the health business arm announced three areas of focus:
- Accelerate health system improvement through $250 million capital allocation.
- Enhance JPMorgan Chase employee health benefits through strategic initiatives.
- Promote healthcare equity in the communities we serve.
“COVID has shed light on both the greatness of our healthcare system and its challenges,” said Peter Scher, vice chairman, JPMorgan Chase, who recently expanded his responsibilities to oversee Morgan Health. “The firm has been investing in developing solutions to address social and economic challenges over the past 10 years. We plan to take what we’ve learned there and apply it to healthcare.”
Amy joined TriMed Media as a Senior Writer for HealthExec after covering home care for three years. When not writing about all things healthcare, she fulfills her lifelong dream of becoming a pirate by sailing in regattas and enjoying rum. Fun fact: she sailed 333 miles across Lake Michigan in the Chicago Yacht Club "Race to Mackinac."