Startup Atria Health’s Goal Is to Help Cardiology Practices Remain Independent
A startup called Atria Health is offering an alternative private equity model to help cardiology practices stay independent. The company stresses that it invests in, but does not own, the independent practices.
Backed by Cypress Ridge Capital, Atria Health said it provides its physician partners with a suite of resources, infrastructure and support services that empower physicians to practice the way they envision.
The business model is designed to ensure physicians retain control, receive fair deal terms and hold shared equity in their growing enterprise, Atria said.
A nationwide launch is following a collaboration with AMS Cardiology, a cardiovascular practice in the Philadelphia area. As part of the partnership, Atria built a new ambulatory surgery center that performs low-risk outpatient procedures like diagnostic cardiac catheterizations, coronary interventions, electrophysiologic procedures, and more. The facility also includes nuclear testing, cardiac imaging and intensive cardiac rehab services, all in one outpatient location.
In an e-mail Q&A, Matthew Eakins, M.D., CEO and co-founder of Atria Health, discussed the company’s origins and the market opportunity.
Healthcare Innovation: What are some of the challenges that cardiology practices have had remaining independent?
Eakins: In 2008, 90% of cardiologists were independent, but that shrank to just 16% in 2018. Independent cardiology practices face enormous challenges: operational and technical complexities, administrative and regulatory burdens, as well as financial strains and unsustainable costs.
HCI: How does the joint venture model between Atria and the practices work?
Eakins: We don’t own practices. Instead, Atria Health forms a long-term partnership with a physician-owned and -led practice. This allows us to invest capital, capabilities, and capacity to support the practice in their vision for growth and patient service. Our focus is creating new, value-based service lines together. These new services provide care to patients in the community and deliver exceptional patient experiences as well as better health outcomes, all at around half the total cost.
HCI: What is the origin story of the company? Was it created by cardiologists?
Eakins: Yes. As early as 2020, we identified the opportunity in cardiology, but it took our first partner in practice, AMS Cardiology, to really refine the model and ensure we could execute collaboratively. We’ve been working with them over the past few years to prove the model works.
All of us had deep, personal experiences in cardiology – most life-altering like my own, as I watched my dad saved by modern medicine and a quintuple CABG [coronary artery bypass graft]. But we were dismayed by the trend toward employee physicians and the impact that can have on patient care, but also physicians themselves. Medicine is a vocation of patient service, but too many physicians are suffering burnout. We believe this moral injury is a consequence of the employment model driven by the loss of autonomy.
We designed Atria to be the unique alternative. We envisioned a partnership for independent cardiovascular practices that delivered empowerment, not employment.
HCI: Can you name some other cardiology practices Atria works with besides AMS?
Eakins: AMS Cardiology is Atria’s inaugural partner practice. We’ve used the last two years to perfect the model and build the capabilities to deliver. We have several more across the country that we are excited to announce in the very near term.
HCI: What are some features of Atria’s tech-enabled platform or model that helps unlock cardiac care market opportunity for practice partners?
Eakins: Being founded recently has afforded us the unique opportunity of building all our infrastructure using 2025 technology. We are not burdened by decades of “tech-debt,” but instead are delivering innovation immediately. A couple examples include our application of generative AI and large language models. Working with partners, we’ve built and implemented clinical decision-support tools. Our physicians are leveraging these tools to improve quality and close gaps in care. We are ensuring that every patient has access to the diagnostics and care they require.
HCI: On the Atria website it says they are forming a network of independent practices that can learn from each other. Can you share a few examples of how practice partners are collaborating to share best practices?
Eakins: We believe that the best ideas come from physicians organically. Whether it is in structured settings like national clinical governance board or quality committees or informally through our common platform and “curbside” consultations with peers. Physicians in Atria’s network benefit from expert peers that they can rely on, whether for clinical or business topics. A great example might be administering conscious sedation. For a cardiologist that has spent their career in the hospital setting with teams and teams of people, they might not be comfortable administering in an ambulatory setting. Physicians who are well-trained with years of experience help teach and oversee other partners as they advance care.
