Pelto Health Partners launched three years ago with a mission to preserve physician independence in an increasingly consolidated healthcare environment.
The group was born from a collaboration among three physician-owned orthopedic groups — Durham, N.C-based EmergeOrtho, Indianapolis-based OrthoIndy and Seattle-based Proliance Surgeons — each committed to supporting private practice sustainability.
Pelto was formed to counteract the trend of small and midsized practices being pushed toward hospital employment or acquisition by private equity firms.
“We felt something needed to be done to keep independent groups independent, as many were being driven into hospital employment or selling to private equity,” Frank Aluisio, MD, of EmergeOrtho, who now serves as chair of Pelto’s board, told Becker’s. “Maintaining independence is important in prioritizing patients and the physician-patient relationship — not profits.”
Pelto was envisioned as a platform to support small to midsized independent groups, particularly those struggling with nonclinical burdens like administrative tasks, vendor negotiations and infrastructure investments.
Pelto aimed to create a “landing spot for small to medium-sized groups that were struggling,” Dr. Aluisio continued, and to help out with back-office functions.
Since its founding, Pelto has expanded to include at least six additional physician groups. But that growth has been measured and intentional, Dr. Aluisio said. Rather than rapidly scaling and risking infrastructure strain, the organization focused on thoughtful integration.
Pelto has also developed a structured onboarding process for new members to assess alignment and ensure mutual benefit.
“We now have a due diligence process to evaluate how a group would benefit from our contracts, and we share our future plans to gauge their interest,” he said. “As our scope and leverage grow, we can scale faster, if needed.”
In February, Pelto introduced a new suite of advisory services to further support its members and prospective partners. These services range from project management to executive guidance, covering areas such as brand strategy, ASC development, human resources and supply chain management.
The organization has also rolled out fractional executive services aimed at helping practices with leadership needs without committing to full-time hires.
“One of the advantages is that the admin and C-suites of our founding groups have all been through this process before,” Dr. Aluisio said. “So we have a lot of experience and can really support others going through similar transitions.”
Having a fractional CEO, CFO or any C-suite executive allows independent groups that might not be large enough or want to support a full-time hire to bring in temporary leadership.
“Essentially, they can rent out someone to fill that role, either while they search for a permanent hire or as a long-term solution without the cost of a full-time contract with benefits and bonuses.” he said. “It’s essentially leasing a function that fills a critical need.”
As Pelto’s capabilities have grown, so too have its collective benefits, including improved contracts and operational efficiencies.
“It’s become a great think tank, and we’ve experienced cost savings and better contracts,” he said. “The goal has always been to help practices remain independent and deliver value they couldn’t access alone.”
Looking forward, Dr. Aluisio believes that smart consolidation among independent practices is key to their long-term viability.
Dr. Aluisio also sees Pelto, and the model it represents, as essential to the broader healthcare transition toward value-based care.
“Looking ahead, as healthcare transitions more toward value-based care, independent groups will lead that charge,” he said. “It’s hard to do alone, but, by combining efforts through Pelto, we can survive and lead the way forward.”
