Another Greedy, Tampering Owner for Kindred Hospice

Strange Tony,

Financial rapscallions TPG Capital and WCAS (Welsh, Carson, Anderson and Stowe) did not value employees at our hospice site after they took a majority ownership stake in July 2018.  Humana became the operating partner with 40% ownership.  Together they devalued our hospice employees.  It took a year for them to drive away experienced, talented, dedicated and caring hospice workers by implementing Curo Healthcare's sparse staffing models and complex, unreliable technology. 

Humana never equalized Kindred at Home benefits, even after buying out the rest of KAH from TPG and WCAS in August 2021.  They did improve the retirement match but it remains half of Humana's employee match.

The next round of abuse will come when Humana officially offloads the portion it just acquired to yet a different financial rapscallion, Clayton, Dubilier and Rice.  Consider what some CDR employees said on Glassdoor.

Management plays politics, associates + principles always look down at you, No rules for HR lady but all rules apply to all staff, partners expectations are ridiculous.  Fix up, stop playing political games, appreciate your staff 

Hostile environment within the administration team. Lack of professionalism and very much a cult like working environment. HR - a complete mess No new starters stay at this company...  Bad management.

They did not value the employees of the organization they acquired.  It's not all about money, people/employees matter.

CDR will continue President David Causby's "value add" to executive wallets and personal wealth accounts.  How does a hospice organization become an enrichment vehicle for greedy leaders and financial rapscallions?  The Senate Finance Committee is supposedly asking this question.  I'm afraid the answer will not come in time to save what is left of our once great hospice.

Anonymous 

Kindred Hospice's CDR Bids for Infant Formula

Strange Tony,

Financial rapscallion Clayton, Dubilier and Rice wants to buy a baby formula maker after winning 60% of Kindred Hospice/Community Care.  Greed from birth to death, it's the financial rapscallion way.

Anonymous

Humana Finally Reveals KAH Revenues

Strange Tony,

Humana has reported minimal information about Kindred at Home's finances since it became the 100% owner of the company in August 2021.  Today's Q1 earnings report had top line revenue of $726 million for KAH but not much more.   Assuming steady business throughout the year KAH would come in under $3 billion in revenue, i.e. less than when it acquired the company in July 2018.  Hospice has some seasonality so the number could come in over $3 billion.

Hospice had higher margins than Home Health when Humana closed last summer on the 40% it did not own.  Another sale of the hospice division to financial rapscallions should enrich CEO David Causby yet again.  He's on his __nth king's ransom?

Some may recall Causby's butchering of the Harden Healthcare integration (during the Gentiva days).  He combined Kindred Hospice with Curo Healthcare by keeping the brand salad and putting larger hospices under Curo's crappy technology and miserly staffing models.  

Anyone who remembers the torture TPG Capital, WCAS and Humana put our hospice through must be dreading Clayton, Dubilier and Rice.  

There has been no word on David Causby's response to the Senate Finance Committee's request for information on private equity ownership of hospice companies.  

I'd love to read a report before our hospice gets sold down the river yet again.

Anonymous

CDR Due Diligence on Kindred/Curo Hospice

Strange Tony,

Financial rapscallion Clayton, Dubilier and Rice conducted due diligence on Kindred Hospice and Community Care before agreeing to buy 60% from Humana for $2.8 billion in cash.  

Did they find the June 1, 2021 False Claim lawsuit against Kindred/Curo Hospice CEO Larry Graham before inking the deal? 

Thus, by knowingly submitting false claims or causing the submission of false claims, and knowingly concealing or knowingly and improperly avoiding Avalon’s obligations to repay overpayments, for hospice services provided to Medicare and TennCare beneficiaries in Tennessee who were not terminally ill from at least January 1, 2010 through February 20, 2020, Defendants are liable under the False Claims Act, 31 U.S.C. § 3729, et seq. (the “FCA”), the Tennessee Medicaid False Claims Act, Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 71-5-182 to -185 (the “TMFCA”), and common law theories of payment by mistake and unjust enrichment.

The lawsuit misses Kindred at Home's ownership of Curo, as well as Humana and its financial rapscallion partners (TPG Capital and WCAS) packaging the two companies in a summer 2018 buyout.

Humana was the operating partner of Kindred at Home from July 2018 through February 2020 and responsible for any fraudulent claims made to Medicare/Medicaid.

In approximately late 2018 or early 2019, at least two former Avalon nurses repeatedly raised concerns regarding ineligible patients to Avalon and Curo managers, including the Avalon Johnson City DOO, medical director, and the lead nurse, as well as the Curo Area Vice President of Operations, about patients who were not eligible for hospice. When these nurses informed the DOO that certain referred patients were ineligible, the DOO responded that “corporate” was requiring that the patients be admitted.

Similarly, in early 2020, Avalon Nashville terminated a former nurse after she repeatedly informed the current Nashville DOO that referrals or patients were not eligible for hospice, including numerous patients who were residents at Hillcrest Healthcare Center, a skilled nursing facility in Ashland City. For example, one Hillcrest patient who the nurse did not think was hospice appropriate informed the nurse that Hillcrest had told her the only way she could continue to stay at the facility was to elect hospice. When this former nurse did not believe a referred patient was eligible, the Nashville DOO sent a different nurse to evaluate the patient.

Humana pushed the Curo Health model on Kindred Hospice sites in 2019.  That's how Larry Graham became Hospice CEO.  It's not clear how much Graham profited from the multiple sales of Curo/Kindred at Home in 2018 through today?  How much more will he make when CDR acquires their controlling interest?  The public will likely never know.

Anonymous

Anonymous

Kindred Hospice Goes to Clayton, Dubilier and Rice

Strange Tony,

The winning financial rapscallion for a 60% stake of Kindred Hospice/Community Care is Clayton, Dubilier and Rice (CDR).  Humana will get $2.8 billion in the deal.  The press release said the whole deal was valued at $3.4 billion.  That makes no sense.  

A 60% stake for $2.8 billion translates to a $4.67 billion valuation for the whole company.  The difference between $4.67 billion and $3.4 billion is likely debt, which has to be refinanced at today's higher interest rates.  

Humana paid 11.5 times EBITDA for the rest of Kindred at Home in August 2021.  That deal valued the company at $8.1 billion.  Historically hospice has accounted for roughly half the revenue and half of the company's EBITDA.  

Humana is selling the hospice and community care divisions for a 12x adjusted EBITDA figure.  That means Humana will make money on the sale.  What's a few millions amongst greedy executives.

Not taking Kindred Hospice public means President David Causby's series of king's ransom paydays remain a secret.  CDR is excited to partner with Causby and the executive team.  

The rest of Kindred Hospice is an expense to be controlled.  Executive pay is allowed to soar.  Your's is not.  More pain lies ahead.  

Anonymous

Hospice Sales Talk

Strange Tony,

A Kindred Hospice employee wrote on "Indeed":

The hospice division is up for sale and yet another transition, more corporate speeches, more of the same.

Cue the key employee retention bonuses and promises of no changes.  Those no changes turned into massive hospice staff layoffs, reduced holidays, cuts in holiday pay and worse health insurance.

The July 2018 hope of receiving Humana level benefits never materialized for my coworkers.  Humana decided the hospice division was disposable for capital raising purposes.

Kindred Hospice executives David Causby and Larry Graham won't say how many millions they made when Humana bought the rest of Kindred at Home from its financial rapscallion partners.  

We will be sold to the next round of money changers.  Expect more abuse.

Anonymous

PE Stakeholder Project Confuses Kindreds

 

Strange Tony,

In searching for any information on the Senate Finance Committee's review of hospice company private equity ownership I ran across a report from the Private Equity Stakeholder Project.  

Generic Hospice readers know my disdain for financial rapscallions, who along with Humana trashed our once great hospice (nationally recognized).  However, I also value accuracy  in reporting and I found a error in their report table.  

July 2018 saw the take private split up of Kindred Healthcare.  Humana, TPG Capital and Welsh, Carson, Anderson and Stowe (WCAS) bought out the home health, hospice and community care parts of Kindred, now known at Kindred at Home.  TPG and WCAS took the hospital portions of Kindred Healthcare, long term acute care and rehabilitation hospitals, as well as outpatient rehab services.  

Humana purchased the rest of Kindred at Home from its financial rapscallion partners in August 2021.  WCAS and TPG monetized the post acute hospital division (Kindred Healthcare) to LifePoint in December 2021.  These were distinctly different deals. 

I looked for a way to submit this information so they could consider correcting their report but found no contact information.  

Last year I wrote:

How did Humana and Kindred at Home executives treat employees after the buyout?  They reduced headcount from 56.000 to 43,000.  They cut the number of holidays by 33% and holiday pay by 50%.  

After buying the rest of Kindred at Home Humana increased its employment number by 40,000.  That is why I submitted that number as a possible correction.  I hope the U.S. Senate report is more accurate in this regard.

 Anonymous