Compassus and Bon Secours Mercy Health (BSMH) have finalized an agreement to form a home health and hospice joint venture.
Through the JV, Compassus will operate 10 home health agencies and 11 hospice locations previously managed by BSMH. These agencies are serving patients in Florida, Illinois, Kentucky, Ohio, South Carolina and Virginia. BSMH is maintaining ownership of associated real estate assets.
BSMH and Compassus will each hold a 50% stake. Also, an undisclosed number of the health system’s employees will transfer to work at Compassus.
“We recognize the changing health care landscape and the desire of more patients to have flexible care options, including care in the home,” said Don Kline, chief operating officer, Bon Secours Mercy Health, in a statement. “Bon Secours Mercy Health is proud to provide patients and families with comprehensive care options for every stage of life and look forward to continuing to meet their needs through our partnership with Compassus.”
Compassus, a Tennessee-based hospice, home health, palliative care and infusion company, employs more than 6,000 staff who serve in excess of 100,000 patients annually from over 250 locations in 29 states.
Compassus has entered into similar partnerships, including a JV with Ascension Health branded as Ascension at Home that expanded in Oct. 2023. BSMH also has similar arrangements with other providers.
BSMH is the fifth-largest Catholic health system in the United States, according to a joint press release from the two organizations.The health system’s 60,000 employees offer services through more than 1,200 care sites in seven states, including 48 hospitals.
Talks about a potential partnership with Compassus began with a discussion of the two organizations’ missions and goals, according to the home health and hospice provider’s CEO David Grams. The leaders of both companies were familiar with one another prior to these initial conversations.
“There’s a recognition on the part of health care providers that we need to increase access, advance clinical outcomes and be good stewards of resources. These partnerships are grounded in those objectives,” Grams told Hospice News when the transaction was announced. “Then you also look at what integrated home-based care can do for the ecosystem. In any community health system ecosystem, it can create a feedback loop, if you will, that then creates patient loyalty the next time care is required.”