Epic Health Services, a Dallas-based pediatric skilled-nursing and therapy company, has acquired Loving Care Agency, a New Jersey-based pediatric and adult home-care provider.
Epic, not to be confused with Epic Systems Corp., the major electronic health-record provider, will now serve 10 states across the U.S.—four more than before the acquisition. Loving Care's adult division is not included in the deal, and will be spun off into a separate entity when the Epic purchase closes.
The acquisition is expected to close in February. Loving Care, based in Hasbrouck Heights, N.J., serves about 1,500 pediatric patients in seven states, while Epic provides care for more than 6,000 children, according to a release.
A spokeswoman for Epic declined to release the sale price. Glen Cavallo, LCA's president and CEO, will transition out of the company once the deal closes.
In December, Epic completed its merger with Nurses to Go, a provider of pediatric and adult private duty and home healthcare services in Missouri.
The skilled-nursing and home health sector has seen a significant amount of M&A activity in recent weeks. Earlier this month, Ensign acquired the Mildred and Shirley L. Garrison Geriatric Education and Care Center in Lubbock, Texas, and HealthSouth completed its previously announced acquisition of Encompass Home Health and Hospice.
Kindred Healthcare announced at the end of 2014 that it was terminating leases at nine nursing centers, in an effort to scale back is business in the skilled-nursing space.
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