SAN DIEGO, Dec. 3, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Ensign Group, Inc. (Nasdaq:ENSG), the parent company of the Ensign™ Group of skilled nursing, rehabilitative care services, home health and hospice care, home care, assisted living, and urgent care companies, announced today that it acquired Guardian Angel Hospice, a Medicare and Medi-Cal certified hospice agency located in San Diego, California.
This acquisition was completed concurrent with Ensign's previously announced acquisition of nine skilled nursing and assisted living operations, a home health agency and a private home care business from Shea Family Care, the largest provider of a complete continuum of post-acute healthcare services in the San Diego market. Through these acquisitions, Ensign operating entities will be able to deliver the full continuum of post-acute care services, including skilled nursing, assisted living, home health, hospice, and personal care services to patients and their families in San Diego.
"Our strategic expansion in the San Diego market allows us to serve the full continuum of post-acute care needs of San Diegans, whether that care takes place in our facilities or their homes," said Christopher Christensen, Ensign's President and Chief Executive Officer. "Providing this full range of services," Christensen continued, "gives us a unique opportunity to improve outcomes and reduce rehospitalization rates for those patients who entrust us with their care."
All three operations will be held by Cornerstone Healthcare, Inc., Ensign's home health and hospice operating company, and, acknowledging San Diego's maritime history, will operate under the names "Seaport Home Health," "Seaport Hospice," and "Safe Harbor Home Care."
"These strategic acquisitions allow us to enter the San Diego market with a strong foundation of committed caregivers and deep community relationships," said Daniel Walker, Cornerstone's President and Chief Executive Officer. "We are proud to bring these teams together in the Cornerstone family, and are committed to providing life-changing care to our patients and their families."
The purchase was made with cash, and brings Ensign's growing portfolio to twelve home health agencies ten hospice agencies and two home care businesses across nine states. Ensign expects the operations to be operationally accretive to earnings in 2015.
Mr. Christensen reiterated that Ensign's pipeline for future growth remains strong and that Ensign is actively seeking and negotiating additional opportunities to acquire real estate or to lease well-performing and struggling skilled nursing, assisted living and other healthcare related businesses across the United States.
About EnsignTM:
The Ensign Group, Inc.'s independent operating subsidiaries provide a broad spectrum of skilled nursing and assisted living services, physical, occupational and speech therapies, home health and hospice services, urgent care services and other rehabilitative and healthcare services at 136 operations, ten hospice agencies, twelve home health agencies, two home care businesses and fourteen urgent care clinics in California, Arizona, Texas, Washington, Utah, Idaho, Colorado, Nevada, Iowa, Nebraska, Oregon and Wisconsin. More information about Ensign is available at http://www.ensigngroup.net.