Anthem to acquire long-term care plan Integra Managed Care
The acquisition aligns with Anthem's goal of growing its Medicaid business as it hopes to facilitate long-term care services.
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Anthem announced Wednesday that it has entered into an agreement to acquire Integra Managed Care, a managed long-term care plan in New York that provides assistance to adults with long-term care needs and disabilities – ideally allowing them to live safely and independently in their own home.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Integra currently serves about 40,000 Medicaid members who can tap into a dedicated care management team, which includes a registered nurse, social worker and coordinator, who work in partnership with members, families and healthcare providers to help them meet their long-term care needs.
Felicia Norwood, executive vice president of Anthem's Government Business Division, said in a statement that the acquisition aligns with Anthem's goal of growing its Medicaid business.
"Like Anthem, Integra has established connections with community groups to gain a deeper understanding of how to best support the whole-health needs of the people we are privileged to serve," she said.
WHAT'S THE IMPACT?
Anthem is acquiring Integra from a wholly-owned, indirect subsidiary of Personal Touch Holding Corporation.
Integra has been providing government sponsored coverage for a full range of long-term care services featuring services in the home, such as nursing; licensed physical, occupational, and speech therapy services; and home health aide services.
The acquisition is expected to close by the end of the second quarter of 2022 and is subject to customary closing conditions. Upon closing, Integra will join Anthem's Government Business Division.
Anthem's legal advisors are White & Case, Hinman Straub and Lewis Rice. Ruskin Moscou Faltischek, Greenberg Taurig, and ESOP Law Group are acting as legal advisors for Integra. Stifel acted as the exclusive financial advisor to Integra in the transaction.
THE LARGER TREND
In February, several major insurers revealed their financials for Q4 2020. According to John Gallina, Anthem CFO and executive vice president, total operating revenue jumped 16% to $31.5 billion, reflecting growth in Medicare and Medicaid. In fact, Medicaid membership made up more than 11 times the decline in the company's commercial risk-based business.
Membership trends exceeded expectations. Medical enrollment finished the year at 42.9 million members, representing growth of 1.9 million members over the prior year.
As a company, Anthem has been busy in recent months. Just this week, the insurer revealed it's teaming with value-based kidney care company Somatus on a long-term, multiyear partnership that aims to improve kidney care and delivery for members of Anthem's affiliated Medicare Advantage plans.
In October, Anthem Blue Cross and Providence St. Joseph Health System announced they're building out their value-based care program through a new partnership with Vim, the maker of a tech platform that connects payers and providers. Vim's platform integrates into hospitals' existing electronic health records to give providers access to workflow applications while offering insurers insights into the point of care. It includes digital scheduling, referral guidance, benefits navigation and care gaps identification.
In May, Anthem revealed a collaboration with Epic to facilitate secure, bi-directional exchange of health information between providers and Anthem's affiliated health plans.
According to an enrollment-trends snapshot released in June by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, more than 80 million people have signed up for health coverage through Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program, a record high.
Between February 2020 and January 2021 there was a 13.9% increase in people who enrolled in coverage, representing about 9.9 million people. That means the increases were seen over the course of the public health emergency caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
At-home hospital-level services became a necessity for health systems when acute-care beds filled during the first surge of the COVID-19 pandemic. There are many hospital at home services, from urgent care, to skilled nursing, to home infusion services, although acute care at home has received the lion's share of attention from health systems.
Not everyone is on board with the concept, however. The National Nurses United and the California Nurses Association released a joint statement this week criticizing Kaiser Permanente's aims to expand advanced hospital services into patients' homes. The unions accused the health system of trying to maximize profits and endangering patients, along with undermining the role of registered nurses in providing care.
Twitter: @JELagasse
Email the writer: jeff.lagasse@himssmedia.com
