Home health and hospice services companies LHC Group and LifePoint Health have signed an agreement to form a joint venture that is expected to launch near the end of the year.
The two groups will share ownership and governance of the venture, which will operate LifePoint's home health agencies and hospices, as well as a few LHC Group agencies located close to LifePoint hospitals.
Monetary terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Under the terms of the deal, the joint venture will shift day-to-day operations management of LifePoint's home health agencies and hospices, as well as all future home health and hospice acquisitions, to LHC Group. LifePoint's home health agencies and hospices will continue to operate under their existing names. A newly-created joint venture governing board with equal representation of both companies will direct key governance decisions.
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William F. Carpenter III, chairman and chief executive officer of LifePoint, said in a statement that post-acute services "are an increasingly important part of our business and our communities' healthcare needs."
LHC Group maintains 133 hospital and home health and hospice locations, and more than 300 post-acute care locations across 25 states. LifePoint currently operates 20 home health and 10 hospice locations within its network of more than 70 hospitals in 22 states.
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