What’s Next for Managed Care?

The managed care mega-deals of 2015 have blown up. Aetna (NYSE: AET) and Humana (NYSE: HUM) amicably terminated their $37 billion merger, following a federal judge’s order in January to block the deal on antitrust grounds. The $1 billion termination fee was in the works. A different federal judge blocked Anthem (NYSE: ANTM) and Cigna’s (NYSE: CI) $54.2 billion merger on similar grounds. Things turned ugly quickly, as Cigna declared the deal dead and sued Anthem for the $1.85 billion termination fee, and another $13 billion in damages on behalf of its shareholders. Anthem says it will go ahead with the merger. What do the Big Five health insurers do now that they’re... Read More »

Doctors Groups on an M&A Hot Streak

Interest in physician medical groups is reaching a boiling point in 2015, with 36 transactions announced as of May 22. Nine announcements were made in May alone, including last week’s deal for the 276-physician Chidren’s and Women’s Physicians of Westchester, by Boston Children’s Hospital. Contrast that with 2014’s total of 60 acquisitions, and 2015 is shaping up to be an interesting year. The big players—IPC Healthcare (NASDAQ: IPCM), MEDNAX (NYSE: MD) and TeamHealth Holdings (NYSE: TMH)—are still leading the field in the number of acquisitions, but there several other companies making inroads. Check out the chart below.  Read More »

Doc Group Acquisitions Pick Up

After a few quiet weeks with no announcements, the Physician Medical Group sector got busy. Sheridan Healthcare, a subsidiary of AmSurg Corp. (NASDAQ: AMSG), acquired Radiology Associates of Hollywood (Florida), which handles radiology services for 12 hospitals and other facilities in Broward County. US Anesthesia Partners picked up another Texas-based practice, Excel Anesthesia, P.A., which it will merge into Pinnacle Anesthesia Consultants, one of its founding partners. Then Partners HealthCare System, which was spurned by the Massachusetts Attorney General in its bid for South Shore Hospital, turned around and angered the AG once again by acquiring Harbor Medical Associates in South... Read More »