Gentiva Inks Deal to Acquire Heartland Hospice from ProMedica for $710 Million

The hospice, palliative care and personal care provider Gentiva has agreed to acquire Heartland Hospice and other assets from the nonprofit health system ProMedica. 

Heartland is valued at $710 million, Bloomberg reported.

Gentiva is a portfolio company of the private equity firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice (CDR). The Atlanta-based provider emerged from the former hospice and personal care segments of Kindred at Home. CDR last year purchased a 60% stake from the insurance mammoth Humana, Inc., (NYSE: HUM) for $2.8 billion.

“Gentiva consistently achieves industry-leading quality of care and patient family satisfaction scores by investing in our people and caregiving capabilities,” David Causby, president CEO of Gentiva, said in a statement. “Heartland is a high-quality hospice and home care provider that shares our values on compliance and putting patients first, and my colleagues and I look forward to growing our number of caregivers so we can expand access to the highest-quality care for more seniors.”

Gentiva’s 30,000 employees care for an average of 24,000 patients daily in 36 states. The Heartland transaction should bring that number to 34,000. Heartland Hospice is headquartered in Toledo, Ohio, with locations in 26 states.

Heartland’s parent company ProMedica includes a network of 13 hospitals, 2,600 physicians, a health plan, 400 skilled nursing and rehabilitation centers, memory care communities and outpatient rehabilitation clinics.

State government reports project that by 2050 seniors 65 and older will represent nearly a quarter (24.1%) of the Buckeye State’s overall population. This is a rise from 17.8% currently, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

In 2021, 80,150 Medicare beneficiaries in Ohio utilized the hospice benefit, according to the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). California saw the most hospice utilization that year, with 156,000 beneficiaries electing these services.

The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2023.

“As part of the Gentiva family, the Heartland agencies will be well-positioned to continue providing compassionate care that prioritizes patient comfort, dignity and well-being throughout the care continuum,” Arturo Polizzi, president and CEO of ProMedica, said in a statement. “For ProMedica, this transaction is an important step toward simplifying our organizational structure and ensuring our long-term financial strength.”