A proposed merger between Beth Israel Deaconess, Lahey Health System, CareGroup, and a number of other hospitals and health systems will reportedly increase spending by $171 million annually, according to a report issued by the Massachusetts Health Policy Commission. Much of the expected increase could stem from the new merged organization’s leverage with payers, the report’s authors claim, even though the new organization intends to focus on moving care to lower-cost centers.

Reporting from Modern Healthcare available here.