How the 2023 Home Health Rule Could Change the Game in Hospice M&A

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) […]

AccentCare, LHC Group, VITAS Execs: Care Continuum Sprawl Central to Hospice’s Growth

Expansion across the care continuum is a key to sustainable growth for hospices, according to executives from some of the industry’s largest companies. The hospice industry has been ripe for growth in recent years, plucking the interest of investors from all walks. Hospices have dug deep into the roots of their growth strategies as competition […]

UnitedHealth Group Adapts to Changing Health Care System Via Optum Investments

The U.S. health care system is in a state of flux, as the home gains prominence as a care setting and value-based payment builds momentum. Recent deals by UnitedHealth Group’s (NYSE: UNH) Optum subsidiary demonstrate a willingness to change with the times. UnitedHealth Group is positioning Optum as a cornerstone of its growing home-based care […]

Court Decision on UnitedHealth Group, Change Healthcare Deal Smooths Path for LHC Group Transaction

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 […]

Hospice M&A Going Strong, But Non-Medical Home Care a Rising Star

While hospice and home health M&A continue to burgeon, non-medical home care is starting to slip out from under their shadows. Deal volume for non-medical home care companies outstripped that for hospice or home health during the first half of the year. As of the end of Q2, this included 23 deals compared to 17 […]

Walmart, UnitedHealth Group Launch Value-Based Health Care Partnership

Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT) and UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) will partner to offer a range of health care services to seniors enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans. The 10-year collaboration will begin in January 2023 at 15 Walmart Health locations in Florida and Georgia and will gradually expand to new markets. The companies expect to serve […]

CHRISTUS, Texas Palliative Care Team Up to Deliver Serious Illness Care

Texas Palliative Care and CHRISTUS Good Shepherd Health recently formed a partnership to expand access to serious illness care for patients and families in growing need. The palliative care partnership was rolled out last month with a goal to improve provider coordination and quality of these services across East Texas. Through the partnership, the two […]

Hospice Multiples Unlikely to Drop

A turbulent economy and slight cool-down in deal activity early in the year have led some to question whether the record-high valuations for hospice assets will start to tumble. Like most business sectors, health care has felt the aftershocks of global economic trends such as rising inflation, supply chain disruption, and the continued effects of […]

How Proposed Cuts to Home Health Payments Could Impact Hospice M&A

Disruption in home health reimbursement has an influence on the hospice mergers and acquisitions market, particularly among the rising number of companies offering both services. The most recent example is the 2020 implementation of the Patient-driven Groupings Model (PDGM). Uncertain about how this new payment system would impact their businesses, a number of strategic buyers […]

Congress Mulls Bills to Investigate Travel Nurse Agency Business Practices

Many hospices have relied heavily on travel nurse agencies to reinforce their clinical teams during the pandemic. Now, a pair of bills currently before Congress would require a federal study of those agencies’ impact on health care. The Travel Nursing Agency Transparency Study Act would instruct the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) to study the […]