LAFAYETTE, La., May 02, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- LHC Group (NASDAQ:LHCG) and Baptist Memorial Health Care today announced entry into a definitive agreement to form a new joint venture to enhance home health and hospice services in Tennessee and Mississippi – with possible future expansion into Arkansas. Baptist Memorial Health Care is a 17-hospital system spanning a three-state area.
Baptist provides home health and hospice services at eight facilities in Tennessee and Mississippi – with 300-plus employees serving more than 900 patients across 50 counties. It is anticipated that the joint venture agreement will be completed on June 1, 2017, subject to customary closing conditions, at which time LHC Group will purchase majority ownership of the home health and hospice facilities and assume management responsibility. The facilities will continue to operate under their existing names. LHC Group expects annualized revenue from this transaction of approximately $25 million and that the transaction will be slightly accretive to LHC Group’s 2017 earnings per share.
The Baptist Reynolds Hospice House, located on the campus of Baptist Memorial Hospital-Collierville, will remain a part of the Baptist System. The Hospice House will continue its vision and mission to provide comfort and support to patients and loved ones when a life-limiting illness is no longer manageable at home. In addition, the Kemmons Wilson Family Center for Good Grief will remain affiliated with Baptist. All donations made to the Hospice House and Grief Center will be used to further the mission of Baptist.
“This new partnership is an exciting opportunity for both organizations to combine our talent, assets, and experience to reach more patients with quality home health and hospice care,” said Keith G. Myers, LHC Group’s chairman and CEO. “Baptist is a highly respected healthcare provider with an impressive record of quality and a history of providing leading-edge care. Our LHC Group team looks forward to expanding our presence in Tennessee and Mississippi and working with our new partners to provide high-quality care and improve post-acute outcomes for our patients.”
Jason Little, president and CEO of Baptist said, “Our commitment to providing our patients with safe, high quality care extends beyond the doors of our hospitals and to post-acute settings, including the patient’s home and hospice. In partnering with LHC Group to expand our ability to provide the best post-acute care, we gain the expertise, resources, and infrastructure of one of the country’s leading post-acute care providers. In addition, there is no other home health and hospice company in the country that has LHC Group’s long history and deep experience partnering with hospitals and health systems to expand these greatly needed services to their communities.”
Hospital and home health partnerships are a key component in helping patients manage their conditions and achieve the best possible health. LHC Group is the joint venture partner of choice for 73 health systems nationwide consisting of 190 hospitals – delivering patient-centered care in the comfort of home.
About LHC Group, Inc.
LHC Group, Inc. is a national provider of non-acute healthcare services, providing quality, cost‑effective healthcare to patients primarily within the comfort and privacy of their home or place of residence. LHC Group provides a comprehensive array of healthcare services through home health, hospice, community-based services agencies and facility-based services. LHC Group operates 305 home health services locations, 73 hospice locations, 11 community-based service locations and six long-term acute care hospitals (LTACHs) with eight locations.
About Baptist
One of the nation’s largest not-for-profit health care systems, Baptist Memorial Health Care offers a full continuum of care to communities throughout the Mid-South. The Baptist system, which consistently ranks among the top integrated health care networks in the nation, comprises 17 affiliate hospitals in West Tennessee, North Mississippi and East Arkansas; more than 4,000 affiliated physicians; Baptist Medical Group, a multispecialty physician group with more than 500 providers; home, hospice and psychiatric care; minor medical centers and clinics; a network of surgery, rehabilitation and other outpatient centers; and an education system highlighted by the Baptist College of Health Sciences. The Baptist system employs more than 13,000 people, and, according to the Sparks Bureau of Business and Economic Research at the University of Memphis, Baptist Memorial Health Care’s annual economic impact is estimated at more than $2.6 billion.