Heartland Hospice Expands in Minnesota

Heartland Hospice has opened a de novo location in Mankato, Minn., which will serve four counties in the south central region of that state. Heartland is a subsidiary of ProMedica Senior Care.

Parent company ProMedica provides hospice, home health and also includes a network of 13 hospitals, 2,600 physicians, a health plan, 400 skilled nursing and rehabilitation centers, memory care communities, and outpatient rehabilitation clinics.

“The opening of the Mankato agency allows us to further expand our patient outreach in Minnesota,” said Darlene Feltes, administrator at Heartland. “We are honored for the opportunity to provide support and comforting and compassionate care to families in the South Central Minnesota communities.”

Advertisement

Demographic tailwinds offer strong support for hospice businesses in Minnesota. Seniors aged 65 and older comprise 15% of the Minnesota population, according to the research group Minnesota Compass. That totals nearly 806,00 individuals, a number expected to rise above 1.3 million by 2040.

The state ranked 12th in the nation in hospice utilization during 2018 with 52.7% of its Medicare decedents electing hospice, according to the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization. Utah leads the nation in utilization with 59.4%. The national average is slightly higher than 50%.

Minnesota has been a very active market through 2020 and into 2021.

Advertisement

Minneapolis-based Livio Health has launched a partnership with cancer care provider Minnesota Oncology to offer home-based palliative care to Medicare Advantage beneficiaries covered by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota.

Private-equity backed St. Croix Hospice has grown its footprint in its home state with a new location in Grand Rapids, and AccentCare Inc. is establishing a new post-acute care organization with Fairview Health Services, which will offer hospice, home health and other care. AccentCare will be majority owner of the company with Fairview maintaining 20% ownership. AccentCare recently merged with Seasons Hospice & Palliative Care.

Companies featured in this article:

,