TUCSON, Ariz. — Tucson Medical Center is expected to announce an alliance with four rural hospitals in southern Arizona on Monday.
The Arizona Daily Star reports the Southern Arizona Hospital Alliance unveiling comes as a 283-mile march supporting rural hospitals culminates in Washington, D.C.
The event is being organized by the National Rural Health Association, which estimates more rural hospitals have closed since January 2013 than in the past 10 years combined.
The southern Arizona alliance allows the hospitals to apply for grants as a group and make purchases collectively.
Tucson Medical Center will serve as the hub and founding member of a partnership that includes Northern Cochise Community Hospital, Benson Hospital, Copper Queen Community Hospital and Mount Graham Regional Medical Center.