The Role of Medicare Advantage in Growing Palliative Care Services

For the time being, Medicare Advantage may be providers’ best bet for palliative care reimbursement. The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) also allows Medicare Advantage plans to cover palliative care as a supplemental benefit. In addition, the agency has integrated palliative care components into the Value-Based Insurance Design Model (VBID), often called […]

Palliative Care a ‘Natural Fit’ for Home Health Agencies

Though relatively few home health agencies provide palliative care, those providers and their patients can benefit from more integration of those services. Currently, the palliative care space is dominated by hospices and health systems. Only 7% of community-based palliative care programs are operated by home health organizations, compared to about 50% for hospices, according to […]

C-Suite Shake Ups at Pennant Group; Financial, Legal Leadership Moves at Choice Health at Home, Hosparus

Pennant Group reorganizes its executive team The Pennant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: PNTG) recently began the hunt to fill CFO and chief investment officer roles. This follows the recent announcement that Derek Bunker has resigned as Pennant’s chief investment officer, executive vice president and corporate secretary, effective Dec. 31, 2022. “On behalf of the Pennant team, […]

Choice Health CEO Jackson: Instant Care Deal an Extraordinary Opportunity in Non-Medical Home Care

Texas-based Choice Health at Home’s recent purchase of Instant Care of Arizona is bursting with long-term growth potential. The deal marked Choice’s first steps into the Arizona market and made the company a stronger player in the private duty and personal care arenas. The state’s payment landscape and demographic trends drew Choice’s eye to the […]

Choice Health Acquires Private Duty Company Instant Care, Enters Arizona Market

Texas-headquartered Choice Health at Home has entered the personal care space with the acquisition of Instant Care of Arizona for an undisclosed sum. The transaction also gives Choice its first foothold in the Grand Canyon State. Established in 2003, Instant Care of Arizona provides in-home senior care and caregiving support to patients and their families […]

Regulators Taking Aim at Hospice PE Backers

Private equity firms are pouring investment dollars into hospices at a record pace. Meanwhile, legislators and regulators as far up as the White House are taking aim at those firms. Despite a cool down in the hospice mergers and acquisitions market during the first quarter of 2022, private equity firms have stayed aggressive on deals. […]

Staff Poaching on Rise Amid Hospice Labor Shortage

As hospices continue to duke it out in the labor market, more providers are contending with competitors poaching their employees. A number of hospice leaders have told Hospice News that poaching is becoming a greater source of tension in the industry’s recruitment and retention ground war. This often comes with promises of higher wages, more […]

Non-Clinical Staff Shortages Cause Hospices ‘Sleepless Nights’

Hospice providers are nearly desperate to recruit nurses, but their labor woes do not end there. A shortage of non-clinical staff is an additional sore spot. Providers are anticipating demand for non-clinical staff to rise as they compete for resources in an increasingly fierce labor market. Providers have seen no lights at the end of […]

Hospice Operators Hunting for Non-Medical Home Care Deals

Hospice agencies have been in high demand in the health care mergers-and-acquisition market in recent years, particularly among private equity firms. As that trend continues, some hospices themselves are considering their own investments in businesses that can bolster their current services and bottom lines, including private-duty and non-medical home care care. A few factors are […]

Choice Health at Home Secures $190 Million Credit Facility, Completes Two Acquisitions

Texas-headquartered Choice Health at Home has closed a $190 million credit facility led by Oxford Finance, a global specialty financial firm focused on life sciences and health care investments. In conjunction with this infusion of capital, Choice has purchased Kindful Hospice and Amed Home. Financial terms were undisclosed. AllianceBernstein and Maranon Capital served as co-syndication […]