The hospice mergers & acquisitions market continues to be robust. Fourteen hospice transactions took place during the second quarter of 2019, up from eight hospice-related acquisitions during the first quarter, according to a report from M&A advisory firm Mertz-Taggart. The hospice merger and acquisitions market has been thriving in recent years, with several top providers […]
The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has rebased payment rates for the four levels of hospice care in a final rule for Fiscal Year 2020. Among other provisions the rule includes a new requirement that hospices provide an addendum to election statements that would detail care, treatment and services the patient would […]
The hospice and home health care companies for the third quarter in a row have seen the highest multiples of any health care sector in merger and acquisitions transactions, reaching 22.7x in the second quarter of 2019, according to auditing and consulting firm PwC. These high valuations for hospice and home health acquisitions come in […]
Amedisys, Inc.,(NYSE: AMED) is intensifying its de novo activity through 2019 and beyond. The company expects to open seven to nine de novo operations nationwide during 2019, with the new locations heavily weighted towards hospice. At least five of this year’s de novos will be hospices, compared to three home health locations. “We had one […]
All signs point to a strong showing for hospice mergers and acquisitions through the year and into 2020 as companies and investors shy away from home health in anticipation of potential fallout from the forthcoming patient-driven groupings (PDGM) model. Eight hospice acquisitions took place during the first quarter of 2019, up from seven transactions during […]
Amedisys Inc., (NASDAQ: AMED),the third largest provider of hospice and home health in the United States, is prioritizing expansion of its hospice footprint through acquisitions and de novo activity, as the company cools down its home health care acquisition efforts due to uncertainties regarding the patient driven groupings model (PDGM). A focus on hospice growth […]
National and regional hospice chains seem unfazed by proposed Medicare payment rebasing for fiscal year 2020—confident that the updates will not adversely affect their businesses—though smaller organizations may take a more significant hit. The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) in late April released its annual proposed rule that outlines the agency’s regulatory […]
Cornerstone Healthcare Inc., a subsidiary of The Ensign Group (NASDAQ: ENSG), as of May 1 acquired the assets of Texas-based Resolutions Hospice for an undisclosed amount. Cornerstone subsidiaries now operate 26 hospice operations, 25 home health operations, and nine other home care operations across 12 states. Prior to this transaction Resolutions Hospice was a family-owned […]
Rising hospice admission numbers led Baton Rouge, La.-based Amedisys Inc. (NASDAQ: AMED) to robust earnings in the first quarter of 2019. The rise in admissions includes both same-store and those associated with acquisitions. Same-store hospice admissions for Q1 2019 rose 5% to 9,711 patients, up from 6,933 in the first quarter of 2018. Average daily […]
The nation’s 420,000 trained hospice volunteers generate more than $469 million in annual savings for hospice providers while administering and supporting essential services for patients, according to the National Hospice & Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO). Hospice volunteers provide more than 19 million hours of service annually. The estimated financial value of a hospice volunteer’s time […]