The burgeoning alliance between the Cleveland Clinic and Community Health Systems, the publicly traded health care juggernaut based in Nashville, Tenn., is eyeing an opportunity in western Michigan in the Grand Rapids area.

Metro Health Corp. in Wyoming, Mich. - not to be confused with the similarly named health system in Cuyahoga County - announced this week it is in the early stages of exploring what it's termed a "strategic equity partnership" with CHS (NYSE: CYH) and the Cleveland Clinic. It wasn't immediately clear whether the partnership would entail a full-on acquisition by the alliance or another sort of arrangement, as a message to a CHS here spokeswoman wasn't immediately returned.

In a news release, Metro Health said the partnership would provide the health system, which operates a 208-bed hospital and 12 physician offices in Western Michigan, access to capital and additional operational and clinical resources to advance its mission. At present, neither the Clinic nor CHS have a presence in Michigan.

If all goes as planned, the arrangement would be the third significant move by the Clinic and CHS since the two organizations forged an alliance last spring. Officials from both organizations previously told Crain's hospital acquisitions weren't top of mind when the initial deal struck.

Last month, the Clinic and CHS announced they were in discussions to acquire the financially stressed Akron General Health System and convert it to a for-profit enterprise. As part of that arrangement, CHS would be the majority owner of Akron General and handle the business operations of the system, while the Clinic would be in charge of the clinical aspects of the hospital.

Less than a week after the Akron General deal was announced, CHS announced plans to acquire Sharon Regional Health System in Sharon, Pa. As part of that deal, the Clinic is expected to participate in clinical program development, quality improvement and branding.

Source: Crainscleveland