Haven was formed because itsfounding companies “have been frustrated by the quality, service,and high costs that their employees and families have experiencedin the U.S. health system,” Gawande said.

The mysterious new health-care venture announced by Amazon.comInc., Berkshire Hathaway Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. will becalled Haven, the firm announced Wednesday.

Haven also unveiled a website, havenhealthcare.com, and a letter from Chief ExecutiveOfficer Atul Gawande, the surgeon, Harvard professor and writerchosen to lead the venture last June.

Related: Where do benefits brokers fit in Amazon's newhealth care venture?

Haven wants to improve access to primary care, simplifyinsurance and make prescription drugs more affordable, according tothe website. It will initially serve 1.2 million employees ofAmazon, Berkshire and JPMorgan, though it later plans “to share ourinnovations and solutions to help others.”

Haven was formed because its founding companies “have beenfrustrated by the quality, service, and high costs that theiremployees and families have experienced in the U.S. health system,”Gawande said in a letter posted on the website.

Excitement, fear

The website is the most detailed information yet about theyear-old, Boston-based venture that has generated excitement in thehealth-care industry even before details of its plans were madepublic. It has also raised fears among health insurers, drugmakersand other parts of the industry that the giant companies backingHaven would use their collective power to disrupt establishedplayers.

Gawande wrote that Haven “will be an advocate for the patientand an ally to anyone” who wants to improve patient care and costs.The company will “create new solutions and work to change systems,technologies, contracts, policy, and whatever else is in the way ofbetter care,” he wrote.

Last month, Berkshire CEO Warren Buffett praised Gawande as a“terrific fellow,” saying that the venture's goals will be to stopthe extreme rise in medical costs and hopefully find a bettersystem for employees. Buffett's business partner, Charles Munger,said in February that it's probably one of the hardest tasks onBerkshire's agenda.

In addition to Gawande, board members of the new venture includeTodd Combs, portfolio manager and investment officer at Berkshire,JPMorgan Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon, and Beth Galetti,senior vice president at Amazon.

The companies have characterized the venture as a long-termeffort that would be free from profit-making incentives andconstraints. Haven will reinvest any surplus into its work,according to the website.

The venture has recently been entangled in a legal conflict withUnitedHealth Group Inc.'s Optum unit. Optum sued a former employee,David William Smith, to enforce a noncompete agreement after he washired by Haven. A federal judge in Massachusetts last month deniedOptum's motion for a temporary restraining order to keep Smith fromstarting work and sent the case to arbitration.

Read more: 

• New court docs: Amazon & Co. want to 'reinventwhat insurance looks like'
• Why brokers should be afraid of Amazon & Co.'snew venture
• How Amazon pharmacy could save the health careindustry $100 billion yearl

Copyright 2019 Bloomberg. All rightsreserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten,or redistributed.