Picture1On June 16th and 17th, 2015, Sisters  Mary Patricia Driscoll and Teresa Maya, Congregational Coordinator, CCVI San Antonio, had the opportunity to visit the Cooperative COOMEVA in Cali, Colombia. COOMEVA stands for “Cooperative of Medical Doctors of the Valley and Professionals of Colombia.”  As of June 14, 2016, CHRISTUS signed a Definitive Agreement with Coomeva Cooperative Medica in Colombia.  Ernie Sadau, President and CEO of CHRISTUS Health shared the following:

As many of you know, we are partnering with a group that has been fiercely committed to the best health care outcomes for its members and their communities since the beginning as a cooperative company. These agreements will give CHRISTUS a share in four of Coomeva’s companies:

1. An equal ownership stake in and management of Sinergia, a health care provider network including two wholly-owned hospitals, two partially-owned hospitals, the largest home care company in the country and 150 ambulatory facilities in nearly every community in Colombia.

2. The health care-related operations and management of Coomeva Servicios Administrativos (CSA), a centralized services and administration company within Coomeva. CSA includes services like human resources, group purchasing, payroll, tax services, and a large contact center that receives an average of 7 million phone calls a month and has one of the lowest employee turnover rates in the industry.

3. A minority ownership stake in Coomeva EPS, a health insurance company that contracts with the Colombian government. Of the 24 million Colombians covered under this program, Coomeva serves 3.7 million, almost 15 percent.

4. A minority ownership stake in Coomeva Medicina Prepagada, a private health insurance company that contracts with individuals and employers to provide private health insurance nationwide. Today, Coomeva has 265,000 lives out of a total market of approximately 1.0 million lives.

CHRISTUS will have equal representation with Coomeva on Sinergia’s executive board and will manage its operation.

Pictured Above: During their 2015 visit, Sr. Mary Patricia Driscoll and Sr. Teresa Maya pose with Alfredo Arana Velasco, President of Coomeva;, Dr. Victor H. Pinzón Parra,(one of the founders of Coomeva who is in his 90’s and comes to visit  the center everyday), and Dr. Joseph Barcie, CHRISTUS Health Corporate Senior Vice President of International Operations.

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