Heal announced this week it will acquire Doctors on Call, one of the largest in-home medical practices providing medical house calls for the elderly in New York City, for $15 million. The target employs a team of physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants to provide medical treatment for chronic diseases, sick visits, and post-hospital care. The company averaged 42,000 house calls to seniors in New York City in 2018.
Heal is familiar with this business, no doubt, as it develops a mobile application that connects patients with doctors and physicians for medical house calls. Its services are available to more than 75 million patients throughout Atlanta, Georgia; California, New York and the District of Columbia/Northern Virginia markets.
This acquisition marks Heal’s entry into New York City, its largest market to date. Heal expects to perform more than 100,000 house calls in 2019, saving roughly $53.7 million in healthcare costs.
With telehealth and virtual care on the rise, it might be surprising to see an acquisition for a medical house call agency, but payers are on board. Heal has formed contracts and agreements with all major PPO plans in California and New York, as well as with Medicare, according to the company’s website. Legislative winds are on the company’s back as well. In 2010, the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation set up the Independence at Home program, allowing Medicare beneficiaries who have multiple chronic conditions to receive primary care services at home. Senators have introduced a bill this year to make the program permanent.
The last major acquisition in the medical house call field, according to our Deal Search Online database, happened in 2015 when Kindred House Calls, a Kindred Healthcare company, acquired Physician House Calls LLC, a primary care practice that delivers care in home-based settings. Before that, Centene Corporation (NYSE: CNC) purchased U.S. Medical Management, LLC for $200 million.
