[UPDATED] Optum Swoops in to Buy Amedisys in $3.3 Billion Transaction

The UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) subsidiary Optum has penned a deal to acquire Amedisys (NASDAQ: AMED) in an all-cash transaction of $101 per share, or about $3.3 billion. The pending transaction followings a previous offer to aquire Amedisys by the home infusion company Option Care Health (NASDAQ: OPCH) for $3.6 billion. “We are excited about […]

What New Allegations that HCA Healthcare Pressured Patients Mean for Hospices

Recent allegations that staff at HCA Healthcare (NYSE: HCA) put pressure on patients to enter hospice dovetail with longstanding questions over how and when patients should be referred. A recent report from the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) alleges that HCA has pressured clinicians to inappropriately “push” patients and families to accept hospice referrals. The […]

Minority Investor Pushing for Enhabit Sale

A minority investor in Enhabit Inc. (NYSE: EHAB) is urging the hospice and home health provider to consider a “full and fair sale process.” The investor – New York-based hedge fund AREX Capital Management, which holds about 4.5% of the shares of Enhabit – brought up the sale idea in a letter sent to the […]

[Updated] With Option Care Deal Pending, Optum Makes Bid for Amedisys

Amedisys Inc. (NASDAQ: AMED) has received an unsolicited proposal from the UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) subsidiary Optum to acquire all outstanding shares of the home health and hospice provider’s stock. Amedisys indicated in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that Optum has proposed an all-cash transaction at $100 per share. This, […]

Key Trends to Watch: Health Systems Moving into Hospice, Home-Based Care

As more care moves into the home setting, more hospitals and health systems are throwing their hats into the ring. Coupled with the entry of more payers into the space, the influx of health systems into home health, hospice and community-based palliative care stands to change the competitive dynamics in markets nationwide. This is the […]

4 For-Profit Hospice Providers to Watch in 2023

The hospice space — and the health care system at large — is in a state of flux, driven by value-based reimbursement models, an expanding home-based care continuum and industry-changing transactions. Halfway through the year, Hospice News’ “Four Providers to Watch,” exemplifies the ways that hospice operators are trying to not only to keep up […]

Option Care, Amedisys Deal Reveals a ‘Whole Different Landscape’ for Hospice Providers

The implications of Option Care Health’s (NASDAQ: OPCH) pending $3.6 billion acquisition of Amedisys Inc. (NASDAQ: AMED) reflect rapidly changing market forces that could affect the industry at large. The rationale behind the transaction rests on four pillars, Option Care executives recently indicated — value-based reimbursement, the importance of scale in payer negotiations, a desire […]

Medicare Advantage Crackdown Could Dampen Palliative Care Growth

Federal regulators are cracking down on the private insurers that administer Medicare Advantage (MA) plans. In turn, that could dampen the growth of palliative care supplemental benefits in MA moving forward. Despite palliative care’s ability to lower health care spending and improve patient outcomes, it remains an underutilized service. That’s partly because providers are forced […]

Newly Launched Kaiser Permanente Venture Risant Health Acquires Geisinger

Kaiser Permanente is launching a new nonprofit provider organization branded as Risant Health, kicking it off with the acquisition of a fellow integrated health system — Geisinger Health. Risant Health’s prime directive is to “expand access to value-based care in more communities nationwide,” according to a statement from the two companies. The financial terms of […]