Anthem Blue Cross to take over Peninsula Health Care

Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield will take over sole ownership of Peninsula Health Care, a health maintenance organization that it had shared with Riverside Health System in Newport News, officials announced Tuesday.

Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

The move is part of Riverside's long-term strategy to change to a business model that would give physicians more power in leading the health system, which includes Riverside Regional Medical Center in Newport News, Rick Pearce, Riverside's president and chief executive, said in a news release Tuesday.

"To successfully implement this structure, Riverside has begun to refocus our resources, necessitating a departure from the insurance component of health care," Pearce said.

Peninsula Health Care serves 120,000 members, who should not see a change with the transition, officials said. Current employees of the joint venture have been offered jobs with either Riverside or Anthem.