Medical Management Startup Buys VillageMD’s R.I. Practices

A Boston-based medical group management company formed in 2023 has acquired the primary care practices in Rhode Island previously owned by VillageMD. 

Arches Medical Partners now employs 50 primary care physicians and operates eight office locations and three urgent care centers in Rhode Island.  

The company deploys its wholly-owned technology subsidiary, New Era Medical Operations (NEMO) software, to enable independent practice associations (IPAs) to negotiate and manage global risk contracts. The company said that NEMO also serves to ‘demystify’ risk for participating physicians, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners. 

“We all know how broken the system is. Arches Medical is looking for PCPs who want better options for themselves and for their patients,” said Chris Kryder M.D., CEO of Arches, in a statement. “We are excited about establishing new solution for our patients and creating this nucleus of primary care in Rhode Island. We expect to grow organically and quickly.” 

Kryder, along with partners Todd Stockard, Manoj Mathew M.D., and Carlos Rivera, formed Arches Medical Partners in 2023. 

The company’s founders have experience in health IT, analytics and value-based care. Kryder worked for two decades as a capitated primary care physician, multi-specialty medical group manager, and IPA executive. In 2000, he founded D2Hawkeye (sold to Verisk 2009) and also co-founded Generation Health (sold to CVS 2011); and chaired Valence Health (merged with Evolent 2016) and chaired Higi (sold to Babylon 2021). Between 2014-2020, he was a healthcare IT investor and led seminars, including at HBS. He currently serves on several boards. He held, by gubernatorial appointment, the primary care physician seat on The Massachusetts Health Policy Commission from 2016-2022.

Stockard was co-founder, president and COO of Valence Health. Valence was a tech-enabled services company supporting provider-based risk organizations across the country that was merged with  Evolent Health in 2016. He remained with Evolent as a technical advisor for two years after the sale. 

Mathew founded a hospitalist group and was with HealthCare Partners / Optum from 2001 to 2015 serving as California Regional Medical Director. He has consulted for GE Healthcare and other entities using his expertise in value-based care.  In 2016, during the formation of Agilon Health, he was recruited as the founding National Medical Director, exiting mid-2021 after IPO.
AMP said it is seeking practices aligned with the shift from fee-for-service to global risk contracting for patients covered by commercial, Medicare, and Medicaid plans. 

As Healthcare Innovation reported last week, Walgreens invested more than $6 billion in VillageMD via two deals in 2021 and 2022 and last year put to work another $3.5 billion when VillageMD acquired Summit Health-CityMD. The company now owns 53 percent of VillageMD, which rang up revenues of $1.6 billion in Walgreens’ second fiscal quarter—a 20 percent pro forma jump from the prior-year period.

The Village leadership team has been closing clusters of its clinics and making other cost cuts in recent months to focus on a smaller number of cities where it has dense store networks. Last fall, the venture set out to close 60 of its 680 locations but in January raised that number to 160. About 140 of those closures have been completed already.