Fresenius announces $1.7 billion deal for Liberty Dialysis Holdings

Fresenius Medical Care, a German dialysis company, announced a $1.7 billion deal for Liberty Dialysis Holdings, Mercer Island, Wash. The deal must be cleared by antitrust regulators and some facilities may be divested to win approval, according to a Fresenius news release. The transaction, which includes debt, is expected to close early next year, according to the release.

Renal Advantage, which operates under Liberty Dialysis Holdings with a second company named Liberty Dialysis, has already received a $300 million infusion from Fresenius, the release noted. Liberty Dialysis Holdings, backed by private-equity firms KRG Capital Partners and Bain Capital Ventures, reported annual sales of roughly $1 billion and operates about 260 clinics, the release said.

Fresenius employed about 77,000 workers and operated about 2,838 clinics including 1,826 in North America as of the end of June, according to the company. Fresenius also announced in the release that it reached a $385 million deal to acquire American Access Care Holdings, a Glen Rock, Pa.-based outpatient vascular care provider for dialysis patients. Antitrust regulators must approve that deal, as well; the acquisition is expected to close by the end of the year. The deal would add American Access Care's 28 outpatient vascular care centers to the 13 operated by Fresenius, according to the release.