Two of the biggest health care organizations in Detroit — Henry Ford Health System and Wayne State University — have signed a long-awaited letter of intent to affiliate, a move that would shake up the health care market in Southeast Michigan.

The agreement, which is expected to be finalized within six months, covers medical education, clinical services and research, officials said Friday morning in a statement.

It also comes on the heels earlier this week of a five-year deal reached between Wayne State University Physicians Group, the medical school's faculty practice plan, and Detroit Medical Center on clinical and administrative services.

In May, Crain's reported that Henry Ford and Wayne State have been talking about combining forces for nearly two years under the code name "Project Leapfrog," a reference to the hope the partners could grow their health care operations beyond that of other health systems based in Southeast Michigan, including Beaumont Health, Trinity Health and Ascension Health.

"I am pleased to inform you that Wayne State University and Henry Ford Health System have signed a non-binding letter of intent to expand our partnership and bring our two Detroit anchor institutions even closer together," M. Roy Wilson, M.D., president of Wayne State, said in a statement.

"This is a significant step toward our shared vision of building a joint health sciences center that will transform health care delivery, medical education and research, and — most importantly — the health outcomes in our city, and beyond," Wilson said.

Under the proposed plan, which Wilson said will take hard work to finalize, the affiliation would designate Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit as the primary institutional affiliate for Wayne State University's School of Medicine, College of Nursing and Eugene Applebaum College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences.

"This is truly a groundbreaking collaboration — a private nonprofit organization and a public institution coming together in a revolutionary way," Wright Lassiter III, president and CEO of Henry Ford Health System, said in a statement. "As we look to the future of patient care and the desire to make a long-standing impact on the health and wellness of our community, we believe that we can better achieve these goals through a transformative partnership than we could as institutions working independently."

Wilson explained that the health sciences center "will not be a physical location, but a separate operating and governance structure with a president, board, budget and governing committees." It would oversee management and financial coordination of the partnership's clinical, research and educational programs and activities, he said.

Governing boards for Wayne State and Henry Ford have expressed unanimous support of the plan, Wilson said.

"This is a great example of a public university and a private nonprofit organization coming together to serve an important mission for the benefit of our community," Wilson said. "Our goal is to radically improve the health and wellness of those in our community, and beyond — including the most vulnerable populations. We believe we can achieve more toward this goal by working together rather than independently."

Wilson also made it clear that the affiliation under discussion is not a merger or acquisition. He said both Wayne State and Henry Ford would continue to work with other contracted partners, including DMC.