Regulatory Approvals Needed for Gentiva's Promedica Purchase

Strange Tony,

Debt rating agency Fitch downgraded ProMedica in its latest review.  The debt went from BB+ to BB- due to a significant decline in liquidity (readily available funds).  A news report offered:

...the negative watch reflects the "uncertainty" regarding the $710 million sale of its hospice and home healthcare business to Gentiva since the sale has not received all the necessary approvals yet from regulators. According to Fitch, ProMedica plans to use money from the sale to pay down roughly $452 million of certain debts.

Moody's is yet to update its review of Gentiva debt listed under "Charlotte Buyer."  I don't expect changes until regulators give their stamp of approval.

In November 2022 Moody's downgraded another home health and hospice provider Aveanna Healthcare.  Aveanna's executive team came from Gentiva after Kindred Healthcare purchased the company.  Former Gentiva executives partnered with financial rapscallion Bain Capital.  

Aveanna released its first quarter 2023 results.  The home health and hospice division experienced a 15.8% decrease in revenue in the first quarter of 2023 relative to 2022.  Aveanna is pursuing "additional direct and indirect cost initiatives" while growing admissions.  Executives are committed to growing hospice margins in 2023.  They expect positive cash flows for the last six months of the year from "top line and cost management" initiatives.  No Wall Street analyst asked about home health/hospice during the earnings call.

None asked about the evils of financial rapscallion hospice ownership and Aveanna executives avoided the topic as well.  Their greed and pillaging will continue.

Anonymous

World Waking Up to Damage Done by Financial Rapscallions

Strange Tony,

People are waking up to the damage done by financial rapscallions regarding hospice ownership.

The Center for Economic Policy and Research published a report titled "Preying on the Dying:  Private Equity Gets Rich in Hospice Care."

The American Prospect ran a story "Born to Die" about unethical and illegal hospice practices employed by hospice operators, many owned by financial rapscallions.

Two books on the subject of private equity plundering have or will hit the store shelves.  One is by Gretchen Morgenson and the other by Brendan Ballou.

NPR's Fresh Air interviewed Morgenson on how financial rapscallions increase the income gap.  Economics and Beyond interviewed Ballou about the harm private equity firms do in the U.S.

An article in the New York Times tackles private equity's gutting of America.  It warms my hospice heart to see people waking up.  They say it happens slowly and then all at once.  

Generic Hospice started as an outlet for executive shenanigans inside Gentiva.  It expanded to financial rapscallions once they became our majority owner in June 2018.  It's been a long five years.  

I hope all this attention results in real change, i.e. reigning in bad actor hospice owners.  That's my prayer regarding hospice predators.

Anonymous