Revenue cycle management vendor Emdeon announced this week that it will acquire Altegra Health, which develops analytics tools for payers and risk-bearing providers, for $910 million in cash.

By combining Altegra Health's risk adjustment and quality analytics with its own RCM and payment tools, Emdeon will be well-positioned to support healthcare organizations navigate a new world of exchange-based insurance and value-based care.  

Emdeon's Intelligent Healthcare Network currently reaches 700,000 physicians, 5,000 hospitals, 1,200 payers and processed some 8.1 billion transactions in 2014.

[See also: Emdeon goes private in $3B deal]

Miami Lakes, Florida-based Altegra Health works with Medicare Advantage and Managed Medicaid health plans and other payers operating on commercial insurance exchanges. It develops technology to help health organizations better manage the data for care and reimbursement.

"Altegra Health has created leading end-to-end solutions that provide health plans and other risk-bearing organizations with the data, insights and related services they need to expertly manage care, ensure appropriate reimbursement and engage individuals in improving their use of the healthcare system," said Emdeon CEO Neil de Crescenzo, in a press statement.

"By adding these capabilities and leveraging our Intelligent Healthcare Network, we can further expand the products and services we provide our customers as they address the needs of value-based healthcare," he said.

"Emdeon's commitment to innovation and meeting the ever-changing needs of their customers is something that will allow us to continue our growth as a leading provider of revenue-enhancement, eligibility and enrollment, quality measurement and risk analytics," said Altegra CEO Kevin Barrett, in a statement.

The acquisition, subject to customary closing conditions, is expected to close in Q3 2015.