Medline Selected as Exclusive Provider of Custom Procedure Trays for Upper Midwest Consolidated Services Center
Agreement Expected to Reduce Custom Procedure Tray Costs by an Estimated $17 Million
MUNDELEIN, Ill., Feb. 24, 2014 — Medline Industries, Inc. announced today it has been selected by the Upper Midwest Consolidated Services Center (UMCSC), a member-driven, member-owned healthcare supply network associated with VHA’s Upper Midwest Region, as its exclusive provider of custom procedure trays. The five-year agreement will deliver an estimated combined savings of $17 million to the 43 hospital systems that access the UMCSC.
Medline’s custom procedure tray program was designed to meet the unique requirements of the hospitals served by VHA’s UMCSC. The program improves distribution efficiencies, product standardization and inventory optimization for procedure trays and delivers value by sharing information and working across organizational boundaries.
“VHA’s Upper Midwest Region and the UMCSC are committed to attacking the cost drivers within healthcare and creating synergies with suppliers and providers to bring real cost saving solutions for our member hospitals. The agreement with Medline is an example of that commitment,” said Chris Holt, senior vice president and executive officer, VHA Upper Midwest Region. VHA’s UMCSC serves 43 member hospitals in 20 states.
Medline will assemble the custom procedure trays to each hospital’s exact specifications and deliver them directly to each member facility from its 40 distribution centers strategically located throughout the United States. Medline and the UMCSC have created an infrastructure that will enable facilities in the custom procedure tray program to identify additional savings and efficiencies.
“This program goes far and above the typical vendor-customer contractual arrangement to increase efficiencies and lower our collective costs,” said Joe Gwinn, vice president of corporate sales for Medline. “Our program is built on a model of mutually aligned incentives and rewards, which allow us to work together toward common financial and operational goals, as well as enhanced patient care at every member hospital.”
About Medline
As the nation's largest privately held manufacturer and distributor of health care products, Medline manufactures and distributes more than 350,000 products to hospitals, extended care facilities, surgery centers, physician offices, home care agencies and providers, and retailers. Named one of the country’s "Best and Brightest Companies to Work For,” Medline, headquartered in Mundelein, Ill., has more than 1,200 dedicated sales representatives to support its broad product line and cost management services. For more information on Medline, go to www.medline.com or http://mkt.medline.com/clinical-blog/category/channels/social-channels/ to connect with Medline on a variety of social media channels.
About VHA Inc.
VHA Inc. is a national network of not-for-profit health care organizations working together to improve performance and efficiency in clinical, financial and operational management. Since 1977, when VHA established the first hospital membership organization, the company has applied its knowledge in analytics, contracting, consulting and network development to help members and customers achieve their strategic objectives. In 2012, VHA delivered $1.9 billion in savings and additional value to members. Serving 5,100 health system members and affiliates, VHA represents more than a quarter of the nation’s hospitals. VHA also serves more than 118,000 non-acute health care customers enterprise-wide. VHA is based in Irving, Texas, and has 12 regional offices across the U.S. VHA, together with UHC, owns Novation, a supply chain company, and its subsidiary aptitudeTM, the health care industry’s first online direct contracting market. VHA also owns Provista, a supply chain company serving the non-acute market as well as hospitality, education, corporate and government markets. For more information, visit www.vha.com and follow us on Twitter (@VHAInc).