While the plan was proposed by the university, Reilly will ultimately decide the details of its adaptation because the state holds the HMO--Massachusetts's fifth largest--in receivership.
Five thousand Harvard employees--and five thousand of the employees' relatives--are covered by the plan.
The university's interest in proposing the plan is two-fold, said Wrinn. Harvard wants to ensure quality medical care for its employees, he said. But the Harvard proposal would also have a broader effect: a strong Harvard Pilgrim would help teaching hospitals, which affects the Harvard Medical School (HMS).
There are 17 Harvard-affiliated teaching hospitals in the Boston area, and hospitals' financial health affects "what the hospital can do and how it relates to Harvard," Wrinn said.
And there is one final tie: three decades ago, a group of HMS affiliates--notably then- Dean Robert H. Ebert--helped create the HMO that would eventually become Harvard Pilgrim. Currently, some HMS students are residents in a program offered jointly by Harvard Pilgrim and an affiliated hospital.