UnitedHealth is on track to close on its acquisition of LHC Group sometime next month after finally clearing regulatory hurdles, according to published reports.
The $5.4 billion deal announced last March came under scrutiny by the Federal Trade Commission last summer when the agency requested additional information regarding pay in the healthcare industry and bargaining power of minimum wage workers in the healthcare space. UnitedHealth had originally set a target of the second half of the year to close on the acquisition.
The announcement of the acquisition by UnitedHealth, the nation’s largest private health insurer, of LHC Group reverberated through the home care industry. It was among the largest deals of its kind and followed similar deals, such as Humana’s $5.7 billion dollar transaction to buy the remaining 60% share of Kindred at Home.
Lafayette, LA-based LHC Group operates in 37 states and the District of Columbia, providing home health, hospice, home-and-community-based services and facility-based care. The company has struggled against continuing headwinds from the COVID-19 pandemic throughout 2022. Last week, the company disappointed Wall Street when its third quarter earnings were $.26 short of analysts’ forecasts.
