Beth Israel Lahey Health and Joslin Diabetes Center Sign Definitive Agreement
Cambridge and Boston, MA – Beth Israel Lahey Health (BILH) and Joslin Diabetes Center (Joslin) have signed a definitive agreement under which Joslin will join BILH and bring to the system its expertise as a world-renowned center of excellence in diabetes research, education and clinical care. The signing of this definitive agreement builds on the letter of intent signed by the two organizations in November 2020. During the regulatory review process of the proposed transaction, which is expected to take several months, Joslin will continue to operate independently.
“With Joslin as part of Beth Israel Lahey Health, we can expand access to world-class diabetes care and leading-edge clinical trials for the diverse patients we serve backed by Joslin’s innovative diabetes research,” said Kevin Tabb, MD, president and CEO of BILH. “Working with Joslin’s expert clinicians and researchers, we will help our patients live longer, healthier lives.”
“Joining BILH offers our Joslin clinicians, educators and researchers the opportunity to further collaborate with their peers across the BILH system and expand their outreach to people with diabetes,” said Roberta Herman, MD, president and CEO of Joslin Diabetes Center. “We are excited to further strengthen BILH’s diabetes research and for the opportunity to expand our clinical services and our mission through this new affiliation. We are happy to be part of a system whose vision so closely aligns with ours.”
Joslin was founded in 1898 by Elliott P. Joslin, MD, when he opened his diabetes-focused medical practice in Boston. Motivated by diabetes diagnoses for both his aunt and mother, Joslin recognized the importance of research in building knowledge to treat diabetes, which at the time was not a significant focus of medicine. Today, Joslin is one of only 16 Diabetes Research Centers in the United States funded by the National Institutes of Health. Joslin is recognized by the National Committee for Quality Assurance’s Diabetes Recognition Program for having the highest quality diabetes care and is part of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation Center of Excellence in New England, a cross-collaboration with the Harvard Stem Cell Institute, the UMass Diabetes Center of Excellence at UMass Medical School and The Jackson Laboratory.
Joslin’s plans to join BILH build on a decades-old relationship between Joslin and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) in which Joslin and BIDMC have maintained a strong clinical affiliation, managed shared education programs, and provided a range of clinical services to each other’s patients. Joslin and BIDMC work closely together to provide outstanding subspecialty care for people with diabetes, including in vascular surgery and foot care, and for women with diabetes through pregnancy and childbirth. By joining BILH, Joslin would expand that expertise across the spectrum of primary care, preventive care, acute care, and population health management. BILH currently provides care for more than 100,000 patients with diabetes across eastern Massachusetts and southern New Hampshire.
About Joslin Diabetes Center
Joslin Diabetes Center is world-renowned for its deep expertise in diabetes treatment and research. Part of Beth Israel Lahey Health, Joslin is dedicated to finding a cure for diabetes and ensuring that people with diabetes live long, healthy lives. We develop and disseminate innovative patient therapies and scientific discoveries throughout the world. Joslin is affiliated with Harvard Medical School and one of only 18 NIH-designated Diabetes Research Centers in the United States.
