Sterling Partners Expands into Ophthalmology

by | Feb 27, 2017 9:37 pm | Physician Medical Groups, Private Equity

Sterling Partners, a Chicago-based private equity firm, added the first ophthalmology practice to its healthcare services portfolio with the acquisition of Grand Rapids Ophthalmology. GRO is the first eye care provider to join Great Lakes Management Services Organization, a practice management services organization formed by Sterling to support GRO’s local expansion and larger-scale growth. GRO offers a full suite of eye care services including optometry, retail optical, oculoplastics, cataract surgery and retinal sub-specialties. It employs 11 ophthalmologists and 18 optometrists in 11 locations. Sterling Partners has been busy building up platforms in other areas of healthcare services,... Read More »

What’s Next for Managed Care?

by | Feb 24, 2017 8:38 pm | Managed Care, Physician Medical Groups, Private Equity

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 »

Hospitals Are Buying in to Home Health

by | Feb 24, 2017 7:17 pm | Home Health & Hospice, Hospitals

One anticipated trend that did not come to fruition in 2016 was hospitals entering the home health & hospice space. The advent of bundled payments placed tremendous emphasis on providers to control the patient engagement from start to finish, making it almost imperative for health systems to secure post-acute care providers in the home health and rehabilitation sectors. In 2012 and 2013 combined, there were only two deals involving a hospital purchasing a home health & hospice company. In 2014 and 2015, there were just two deals each year, and in 2016 we saw three. However, in the first month of 2017, three hospital groups have purchased home health & hospice companies.... Read More »
Reporters Notebook: 10th Annual ACG NY Healthcare Conference

Reporters Notebook: 10th Annual ACG NY Healthcare Conference

by | Feb 24, 2017 3:57 pm | Managed Care, Physician Medical Groups, Private Equity

The ACG New York chapter held its annual healthcare conference at the Metropolitan Club on February 23, as always, on the last Thursday of the month. We attended, along with more than 400 others involved in the healthcare industry. The evening’s topic, “The 2016 Election and Healthcare: What You Need to Know,” was obviously the big draw. Moderator Michael Gaffin, Marwood Group’s political strategist and head of its Washington office, played his cards close to the vest during most of the panel, but did opine that the Republicans will be able to do whatever they want to the Affordable Care Act, because they’ve been talking about it so long. On the panel were... Read More »