Ending a monthslong battle, Kindred Healthcare and Gentiva Health Services announced they will merge, creating one of the largest post-acute-care providers in the country. Industry observers hope the merger will help accelerate the movement toward coordinated care in the currently fragmented post-acute-care sector.
Louisville, Ky.-based Kindred said once the deal closes, it will be the country's fourth-largest healthcare employer, with 109,000 employees in hundreds of long-term acute-care hospitals, inpatient rehabilitation facilities, skilled-nursing facilities and hospices.
“Over the last eight weeks, we undertook a robust due diligence process and worked closely and constructively with our counterparts at Gentiva to better understand their operations, financial results and outlook,” Kindred CEO Paul Diaz said in a news release.
The new company is expected to generate about $7.1 billion in annual revenue, making it larger than another recent industry merger between Genesis HealthCare and Skilled Healthcare Group.