Peterson Partners to Back Hospice Provider Ennoble Care

Investment firm Peterson Partners, LLC, has invested in Ennoble Care in partnership with Trilogy Search Partners, Maven Equity, and additional undisclosed stakeholders. Health care entrepreneur Kush Das, founder of the investment firm Circa Health, will take the helm as chairman and CEO of Ennoble.

Ennoble Care provides hospice, home health, palliative care and home-based primary care throughout the northeastern United States. The infusion of capital from its new investors will facilitate expansion into new markets as well as building density within their existing footprint. 

A key component of the company’s growth plans involves capitalizing on emerging value-based payment models.

“We are a part of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovations’ Direct Contracting Model, which will allow us to take a value-based care approach that is inclusive of primary, palliative, and hospice care and develop preferred provider partnerships that support that approach across the continuum,” Das told Hospice News.

Direct contracting, which was unveiled in conjunction with CMS’ Primary Care First initiative, includes three payment model options that are designed to help the agency and health care providers reduce the cost of care and improve quality. The models incorporate lessons learned from other programs such as Accountable Care Organizations, the Medicare Shared Savings Program and Medicare Advantage.

Ennoble’s initial push for expansion will focus on the Eastern seaboard, with eventual plans to build a national presence, according to Das.

Peterson Partners holds more than $1 billion in assets, including 64 portfolio companies. The firm’s investments focus on real assets, private equity, seed stage ventures and search funds.

Private equity interest in the hospice sector has been gaining momentum. These transactions and an influx of new deals during 2021 could drive up hospice valuations that have already reached record highs, with multiples reaching 26x in 2020.

The volume of PE hospice acquisitions rose nearly 25% between 2011 to 2020, according to a report the M&A advisory firm The Braff Group shared with Hospice News.

“We are passionate about helping great people build great businesses. Incoming CEO Kush Das is not only an outstanding entrepreneur with extensive health care and value-based care experience, but also started in the industry as a clinician,” said Dan Hanks, principal with Peterson Partners. “We are thrilled to be backing Ennoble and the critical service they provide.”