LHC Group announces agreement to purchase hospice and palliative care providers in Arizona

PR Newswire

LAFAYETTE, La., Nov. 9, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- LHC Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: LHCG) announced today that it has agreed to purchase East Valley Hospice and East Valley Palliative Care in Mesa, Arizona. The agreement is expected to close on January 1, 2021, subject to customary closing conditions.

LHC Group expects annualized revenue from this purchase of approximately $4.8 million and that it will not materially affect its 2020 diluted earnings per share. Both providers will continue to operate under the East Valley Hospice and East Valley Palliative Care names, respectively.

"We look forward to welcoming the teams at East Valley to our LHC Group family of providers," said Keith Myers, LHC Group chairman and CEO. "We share a mission and vision to provide high-quality, in-home service to those who place their trust in us. Together, we will be able to bring hospice and palliative care to even more patients and families in Mesa and the surrounding Phoenix metro area."

This acquisition expands the company's scope of services in the Phoenix market – in alignment with its co-location growth strategy to provide multiple in-home healthcare services in markets where there is a need and established, sensible benchmarks are met.

In San Marcos, Texas, the company finalized an expansion of its joint venture with CHRISTUS Health to enhance hospice services in that market. LHC Group first announced the purchase agreement in October 2020.

LHC Group operates more than 110 hospice locations around the nation. In-home, end-of-life hospice care helps patients live comfortably, with dignity, when a cure is no longer possible. Hospice professionals provide the emotional, spiritual, and medical support needed when patients are facing the final stages of life. Hospice care can be provided in any place a patient calls home, including nursing homes and assisted living facilities.

Palliative care is specialized medical care that focuses on quality of life for patients and their families dealing with the symptoms and stress of a serious illness. Palliative treatment is appropriate for patients who have been given a prognosis of one year or less and are not ready or eligible for hospice care. Palliative care may be provided concurrently with or without home health care and without regard to the presence of curative or life-prolonging care or homebound status.

LHC Group is a leading national provider of in-home healthcare and hospice services and the joint venture partner of choice for almost 400 leading hospitals across the United States.

About LHC Group, Inc.
LHC Group, Inc. is a national provider of in-home healthcare services and innovations for communities around the nation, offering quality, value-based healthcare to patients primarily within the comfort and privacy of their home or place of residence. The company's 32,000 employees deliver home health, hospice, home and community based services, and facility-based care in 35 states and the District of Columbia – reaching 60 percent of the U.S. population aged 65 and older. As the preferred joint venture partner for almost 400 leading U.S. hospitals and health systems, LHC Group works in cooperation with providers to customize each partnership and reach more patients and families with an effective and efficient model of care.

Forward-looking Statements
Certain statements and information in this press release may be deemed to contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Forward-looking statements may include, but are not limited to, statements relating to our objectives, plans and strategies, and all statements, other than statements of historical facts, that address activities, events or developments that we intend, expect, project, believe or anticipate will or may occur in the future. These statements are often characterized by terminology such as "believe", "hope", "may", "anticipate", "should", "intend", "plan", "will", "expect", "estimate", "project", "positioned", "strategy" and similar expressions, and are based on assumptions and assessments made by LHC Group's management in light of their experience and their perception of historical trends, current conditions, expected future developments and other factors they believe to be appropriate. Any forward-looking statements in this press release are made as of the date hereof, and LHC Group undertakes no duty to update or revise any such statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks and uncertainties. Important factors that could cause actual results, developments, and business decisions to differ materially from forward-looking statements are described in LHC Group's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and its Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, including the sections entitled "Risk Factors", as well LHC Group's current reports on Form 8-K, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.