An expert Q&A on the challenges facing private equity in healthcare, with a focus on key federal antitrust issues, state regulation of PE health care arrangements, including material transaction notice requirements, and changes to the corporate practice of medicine rules.
NeueHealth will be taken private by its largest shareholder New Enterprise Associates and a group of existing investors in a $1.3 billion deal, including debt, the healthcare provider says. At $7.33 per share in cash, the deal represents a premium of about 70% to the NeueHealth stock's last closing price on Monday. The deal includes a 30-day "go-shop" period that will expire on Jan. 23, during which the company can weigh rival proposals. NEA held a 32.9% stake in NeueHealth, as of Sept. 30, according to LSEG data. NeueHealth's executive leadership team will continue in their roles upon completion of the deal and plan to roll over 100% of their equity interests for newly issued equity interests in the privately held company. Previously known as Bright Health Group, the company renamed itself earlier this year. It operates clinics under the brand names of Centrum Health, AssociatesMD, and Premier Medical Associates.
For years, Wellpath, the largest commercial provider of healthcare in jails and prisons across 37 states, has been the target of federal lawsuits and scrutiny by lawmakers for its practices that have been alleged to cause long-term health problems and the deaths of dozens of incarcerated individuals.
Mass General Brigham, the state's largest health care system, remained on solid financial ground in 2024, a news release Wednesday showed, running counter to a drumbeat of concern that the state's hospitals are all in financial jeopardy. In all, the MGB system found itself $2 billion richer in the year ending in September, almost doubling the $1.2 billion net margin the system reported the year prior. Nearly all of the profit came from the system's investment portfolio, gains that largely exist on paper, whereas its core operations operated at nearly break-even. From just its core operations, the health system reported a $46 million operating margin.
“Reference-based pricing,” which a handful of states have implemented, limits how much hospitals can charge some private insurance plans for procedures. Some say Vermont should adopt it.
Norman Regional Hospital's revenue bonds have been downgraded due to a "precipitous decline in liquidity" following the resignation of its CEO and on the heels of a major facility upgrade. Moody's Ratings has downgraded Norman Regional Hospital Authority's revenue bonds rating from Ba1, or "stable," to B1, "significant credit risk," according to a release from the firm. The assessment from Moody's suggests Norman Regional's income is not sufficient to meet its cash flow needs. "The downgrade of NRH's rating to B1 reflects a material and precipitous decline in liquidity well in excess of projections at the time of our most recent review," Moody's says. "Heavy reliance on a short-term line of credit, which is currently fully drawn, ongoing cash flow losses, and challenges with the master facility project have also contributed to the downgrade."