By the Bay Health CEO Steps Down After nearly a decade in the role, California-based By the Bay Health CEO Kitty Whitaker recently announced plans to retire this spring. Whitaker has been at the helm of the nonprofit since 2014, serving as COO prior to that. She became a hospice nurse for By the Bay […]
Kindred at Home
Though buyers remain hungry for hospice acquisitions, smaller deals will likely be the most prevalent during 2023. Acquisition patterns established in 2021 and 2022 are shaping the M&A outlook for the current year. The number of hospice and home health deals fell by nearly a third last year, though a few “megadeals” have driven up […]
In 2022, the hospice community laid the groundwork for a transformational 2023. This year saw industry-changing acquisitions, some of the worst labor headwinds to date, the return of sequestration and a sometimes volatile national economy. During late 2021 and 2022, the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) developed new approaches for enforcing hospice […]
Though hospice deal volume dipped in 2022 compared to previous years, five particular transactions could paint a larger picture of where investors see value in the space. These interesting, unusual or groundbreaking deals could signal what’s to come in 2023 and help shape the hospice market’s long-term future. Optum to pick up LHC Group Though […]
The anticipated acquisition of LHC Group (NASDAQ: LHCG) by the UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) subsidiary Optum is now expected to close during the first quarter of 2023. Optum in April announced its agreement to purchase the Lafayette, Louisiana-based home health and hospice provider for $5.5 billion. Initially expected to close this year, LHC Group today […]
The pendulum of investor interest has swung hard into the hospice market in recent years, but shifts in reimbursement could steer buyers towards home health. Uncertainty earlier this year around Medicare’s proposed 2023 home health payment rates led some stakeholders to expect a swerve towards hospice. The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) […]
As the dust settles from its divestiture of Kindred at Home’s hospice and personal care segments, Humana Inc. (NYSE: HUM) seeks to further expand into value-based care as both a provider and a payer. Humana in August completed its $2.8 billion sale of a 60% stake in Kindred at Home’s hospice and personal care businesses […]
A recent federal court decision that cleared the way for UnitedHealth Group’s (NYSE: UNH) forthcoming purchase of Change Healthcare (NASDAQ: CHNG) is a positive sign for the insurance company’s pending acquisition of LHC Group (NASDAQ: LHCG). The U.S. Department of Justice sought to block the $13 billion Change Healthcare transaction on anti-trust grounds, alleging that […]
Labor pressures are bearing down on LHC Group’s (NASDAQ: LHCG) patient volumes and revenue, hitting its home health segment harder than its hospice business. Workforce strains have put pressure on many providers’ capacity to accept patients, and Louisiana-based home health and hospice provider LHC Group is no exception. Labor costs are up across the board, […]
Humana Inc. (NYSE: HUM) expects revenue to fall by $400 million immediately following its divestiture of the Kindred at Home hospice segment, but anticipates this to be offset by lower operating costs and, in time, the proceeds of the sale. The company signed a definitive agreement in April to sell a 60% stake in Kindred […]