Hosparus Acquires Baptist Health Deaconess Hospice

Hosparus Health has acquired Baptist Health Deaconess Hospice in Madisonville, Kentucky, for an undisclosed sum. The organization is a service of Baptist Health Deaconess health system.

Founded in 1978, Hosparus Health’s 600 employees and 500 volunteers provide care for more than 10,000 patients annually, including hospice, medical care, palliative medicine, mental health and bereavement services.

“We have successfully partnered with Baptist Health Deaconess-Madisonville to ensure that care continues seamlessly for all patients,” Hosparus CEO David Cook said in a statement. “Our team is hard at work to provide a smooth transition for all patients and families, and we are excited to welcome nearly all of the current Baptist Health Deaconess Hospice employees to the Hosparus Health family.”

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Hosparus CEO David Cook

Baptist Health Deaconess Hospice launched in 1993, initially branded as Green River Hospice. It currently serves six Kentucky counties.

In 2021, more than 22,000 Medicare decedents elected hospice care in Kentucky. California had the highest number that year with upwards of 156,000 and Alaska had the lowest at 1,122 patients.

About 17% of the Commonwealth of Kentucky’s 4.5 million population is 65 or older.

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“Nearly all of the current staff will continue in their roles, ensuring a team of familiar faces to continue providing the compassionate care for which they are known,” Alisa Coleman, president of Baptist Health Deaconess Madisonville president, said in a press release. “With the depth of resources offered by Hosparus Health, the team will be well-positioned to continue prioritizing patient comfort, dignity and well-being.”

Hosparus, a nonprofit, also operates two subsidiaries, Pallitus Health Partners — a palliative care provider — and Care Guide Partners, which earlier this year applied for a PACE license from the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

Pending CMS approval, the new PACE center will open in Elizabethtown, Kentucky.

“I was interested in PACE services just because of the similarity that it has to hospice care and the need that it fills, often for some of the poor folks in a community. Because most of the individuals accessing PACE are going to be Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries,” Cook told Hospice News in January. “A lot of times you find that they don’t have an option to stay at home, because they can’t afford to bring in support systems or pay for private sitters, and they end up going to a nursing home.”

Also, in December of last year, the organization cut the ribbon on a $1.7 million community center, as well as a new grief center in July 2022.

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