Compensation Committee
The Compensation Committee reviews and acts on compensation levels and benefit plans for our impact to be in line withexecutive officers, approves director compensation, approves and evaluates the 0.8% increase.
In addition to permanent adjustments, CMS alsoCompany’s equity compensation plans, approves the issuance of stock options, nonvested stock, restricted stock, restricted stock units and other equity-based awards under our equity compensation plans and has the discretionsole authority to make temporary adjustments through calendar year 2026; however, CMSretain, and has elected notretained, compensation consultants to implement a temporary adjustment for calendar year 2024.
On July 5, 2023,advise the National Association for Home CareCompensation Committee with respect to executive officer and Hospice ("NAHC"), the leading national home health trade association, filed suit against CMSdirector compensation. It also provides assistance to our Board of Directors in the United States District Court for the Districtannual evaluation of Columbia over the implementationour Chief Executive Officer. The Compensation Committee is currently comprised of Teresa L. Kline (Chair), Vickie L. Capps, Julie D. Klapstein and Jeffrey A. Rideout, MD. Our Board of Directors has determined that each member of the payment cuts CMS made inCompensation Committee meets the Calendar Year 2023 Home Health Final Rule effective January 1, 2023; that litigation remains pending.
PDGM uses timing, admission source, functional impairment levels and principal and other diagnosesdefinition of an “outside director” as defined by regulations promulgated pursuant to case-mix adjust payments. The case-mix adjusted payment for a 30-day period of care is subject to additional adjustments based on certain variables, including, but not limited to (a) an outlier payment if our patient's care was unusually costly (capped at 10% of total reimbursement per provider number); (b) a low utilization payment adjustment (“LUPA”) if the number of visits provided was less than the established threshold, which ranges from two to six visits and varies for every case-mix group under PDGM; (c) a partial payment if a patient transferred to another provider or from another provider before completing the 30-day period of care; and (d) the applicable geographic wage index. Payments for routine and non-routine supplies are included in the 30-day payment rate.
As a Medicare provider, we are subject to periodic audits by the Medicare program, and that program has various rights and remedies against us if they assert that we have overcharged the program or failed to comply with program requirements. Home health providers are subject to pre- and post-payment reviews for compliance with Medicare coverage guidelines and medical necessity. Adjustments on this basis may include individual claims adjustments or overpayment determinations based on an extrapolated sample of claims. Medical necessity reviews evaluate whether services are clinically appropriate in terms of frequency, type, extent, site and duration. Technical billing and documentation reviews focus on documentation of services. Medicare and other payors may reject or deny claims for payment if the underlying documentation does not support the medical necessity of services or fails to establish satisfaction of a coverage rule, such as if a provider is unable to perform periodic therapy assessments required by coverage criteria or cannot provide appropriate billing documentation, acceptable physician authorizations or face-to-face documentation.
Medicare can reopen previously filed and reviewed claims and deny coverageSection 162(m) of the servicesInternal Revenue Code (to the extent such Code section applies to our compensation practices) and require us to repay any overcharges, as well as make deductions from future amounts due to us. In the ordinary course of business, we appeal the Medicare and Medicaid programs' denial of claims that we believe are inappropriate in an effort to recover the denied claims.
Home Health Non-Medicare
Payments from non-Medicare payors are eitheris a percentage of Medicare rates, per-visit rates or case rates depending upon the terms and conditions established with such payors. Reimbursements from our non-Medicare payors that are based on Medicare rates are paid in a similar manner and subject to the same adjustments as discussed above for Medicare; however, these rates can vary based upon negotiated terms which generally range from 90% to 100% of Medicare rates. Approximately 30% of our managed care contract volume affords us the opportunity to receive additional payments if we achieve certain quality or process metrics“non-employee director” as defined in each contract (e.g. star ratingsthe SEC’s Rule 16b-3. The Compensation Committee may not delegate any of its authority with respect to approving the compensation (including equity-based compensation) of our directors and acute-care hospitalization rates).
Hospice Medicare
executive officers. The
Medicare hospice benefit is available when a physicianCompensation Committee may delegate its authority to approve awards of equity-based compensation to persons other than our directors and
specific clinical findings support a diagnosisexecutive officers to our Chief Executive Officer. A copy of
a terminal condition where the
patient has a terminal diagnosisCompensation Committee’s charter appears on the “Investors” subpage of
six months or less. Hospice care is evaluatedour website (www.amedisys.com) under the link “Governance.”Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee
The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee identifies and evaluates individuals qualified to become members of the Board of Directors and recommends to our Board of Directors all nominees for election to our Board of Directors. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee also provides assistance to our Board of Directors in benefit periods: two 90-day benefit periods followed by an unlimited numberthe annual evaluations of 60-day benefit periods. Payments are based on daily ratesour Board of Directors and its Committees, the review and consideration of corporate governance practices and ongoing board governance education. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee also prepares the slate of chairs and members for each day a beneficiaryof the Board’s standing committees. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee is enrolled incomprised of Molly J. Coye, MD (Chair), Teresa L. Kline, Ivanetta Davis Samuels and Julie D. Klapstein (ex officio). A copy of the hospice benefit. Payments are made according to a fee schedule that has four different levelsNominating and Corporate Governance Committee’s charter appears on the “Investors” subpage of care: routine home care, continuous home care, inpatient respite care and general inpatient care. The daily payment rates are intended to cover costs that hospices incur in furnishing services identified in patients' care plans, based on specific levels of care. Payments are adjusted by a wage index to reflect health care labor costs across the country and are established annually through federal legislation.
On July 28, 2023, CMS issued the final rule to update hospice payment rates and the wage index for fiscal year 2024, effective for services provided beginning October 1, 2023. CMS estimates hospices serving Medicare beneficiaries will see a 3.1% increase in payments. This increase is the result of a 3.3% market basket adjustment as requiredour website (www.amedisys.com), under the
Patient Protectionlink “Governance.”Quality of Care Committee
The Quality of Care Committee is currently comprised of Jeffrey A. Rideout, MD (Chair), Molly J. Coye, MD, Julie D. Klapstein and Affordable Health Care Act and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act ("PPACA") less a 0.2% productivity adjustment. Additionally, CMS increased the aggregate cap amount by 3.1% to $33,494. Based on our analysisIvanetta Davis Samuels. The dual purposes of the final rule, we expectQuality of Care Committee are to (i) assist our impact to beBoard of Directors in line with the 3.1% increase.
Medicare payments include two separate payment rates for routine care: payments for the first 60 days of care and care beyond 60 days. In additionfulfilling its oversight responsibilities relating to the two routine rates, Medicare also reimburses for a service intensity add-on (“SIA”). The SIA is based on visits made in the last seven days of life by a registered nurse or medical social worker for patients in a routine level of care.
Adjustments for eligibility and technical billing requirements may be made to Medicare revenue based on the same claims processing reviews described above for home health services when we find we are unable to obtain appropriate billing documentation, authorizations or face-to-face documentation and other reasons unrelated to credit risk.
Two caps limit the amount of payment that any individual hospice provider number can receive in a single year. Generally, each hospice care center has its own provider number; however, where we have created branch care centers to help our parent care centers serve a geographic location, the parent and branch have the same provider number.
•Inpatient Cap: The inpatient cap limits the number of days of inpatient care an agency may provide to not more than 20 percent of its total patient care days. The daily Medicare payment rate for any inpatient days of service that exceed the cap is set at the routine home care rate, and the provider is required to reimburse Medicare for any amounts it receives in excess of the cap.
•Overall Payment Cap: The overall payment cap is an absolute dollar limit on the average annual payment per beneficiary a hospice agency can receive. This cap is calculated by the Medicare Administrative Contractor at the end of each hospice cap period to determine the maximum allowable payments per provider number.
We estimate our potential cap exposure using information available for both inpatient day limits as well as per beneficiary cap amounts. The total cap amount for each provider is calculated by multiplying the number of beneficiaries electing hospice care during the period by a statutory amount that is indexed for inflation.
Payment rates for hospice care, the hospice cap amount and the hospice wage index are updated annually according to Section 1814(i)(1)(C)(ii)(VII) of the Social Security Act ("SSA"), which requires CMS to use the inpatient hospital market basket, adjusted for multifactor productivity and other adjustments as specified in the SSA, to determine the hospice payment update percentage. The caps are subject to annual and retroactive adjustments, which can cause providers to be required to reimburse the Medicare program if such caps are exceeded. Our ability to stay within these caps depends on a number of factors, each determined on a provider number basis, including the average length of stay and mix in level of care.
Hospice Non-Medicare
Non-Medicare payors pay at rates that differ from established Medicare rates for hospice services, and are based on separate, negotiated agreements. We bill and are paid by these non-Medicare payors based on such negotiated agreements.
High Acuity Care
High acuity care payments are derived from health insurance plans and health system partners. Contracts with health insurance plans provide for fixed payment rates for a 30-day or 60-day episode of care indexed to assigned patient diagnoses in return for our obligation to assume risk for the coordination and payment of required medical services necessary to treat the medical condition for which the patient was diagnosed in a home-based setting. Contracts with health system partners provide for payments on a per diem basis at the contracted rate for each day during the remainder of an inpatient acute stay serviced at the patient's home.
The contracted payment rates with health insurance plans and health system partners are developed by our medical economics team using historical claims and inpatient admission data provided by the respective health insurance plan or health system partner. The data includes medical costs incurred outside of a patient’s historical inpatient stay that may be expected to continue under our program and an estimate of the cost of the medical services under our program which will replace the patient’s inpatient hospital stay. We mitigate the risk of excessive program medical costs by ensuring that we enroll eligible members into the plan, by effectuating clinically effective plans of care and by ensuring that all covered services are related to the condition for which the patient was admitted to the program. Additionally, we have purchased episodic stop-loss insurance for certain payor contracts.
Controls Over Our Business System Infrastructure
We establish and maintain processes and controls over coding, clinical operations, billing, patient recertifications and compliance to help monitor and promote adherence with Medicare requirements.
•Coding – Specified international classification of disease ("ICD") diagnosis codes are assigned to eachreview of our patients based on their particular health conditions (such as diabetes, coronary artery disease or congestive heart failure). Because coding regulations are complexpolicies and are subject to frequent change, we maintain controls surrounding our coding process. To reduce the associated risk of coding failures, we provide annual update training to clinical managers, as needed training to care center directors and clinical managers and training during orientation for new employees to ensure accurate information is gathered and provided to our coding team. In addition, our electronic medical records system (Homecare Homebase) includes automated edits for home health and hospice based on pre-defined compliance metrics. For home health, we also provide monthly specialized coding education, obtain outside expert coding instruction and have certified coders review all patient outcome and assessment information sets (“OASIS”) and assign the appropriate ICD code.
•Clinical Operations – We provide education on coverage criteria and conditions of participation and utilize outside expert regulatory services if necessary. Regulatory requirements allow patients to be eligible for home health care benefits if through a face-to-face visit with a physician or a qualified non-physician practitioner, they are considered homebound and it is determined that skilled nursing, physical therapy or speech therapy services are required. These clinical services may include: educating the patient about their disease, assessment and observation of disease status, delivery of clinical skills such as wound care, administration of injections or intravenous medications, management and evaluation of a patient’s plan of care, physical therapy services to assist patients with functional limitations and speech therapy services for speech or swallowing disorders. Patients eligible for hospice care are terminally ill (with a life expectancy of six months or less if the illness runs its normal course). Our hospice program provides care and
support to our terminally ill patients with a six-month prognosis and their families through services including medical care, counseling, spiritual care, pre-bereavement and bereavement support, medication management and needed equipment and supplies for the terminal illness and all related conditions. Our high acuity care clinical protocols include utilization of the Milliman Clinical Guidelines ("MCG") criteria to ensure that patients are eligible for inpatient level care, in-person evaluations by hospital-based physicians to determine the patient's clinical eligibility for home-based inpatient care, social and behavioral assessments to determine safety of the patient's home setting and an informed consent requirement to ensure that the patient and caregivers are comfortableprocedures in connection with the delivery of inpatient level care in the home.
•Billing – We maintain controls over our billing processes to help promote accurate and complete billing. Processes and controls have been implemented to ensure that prior to the submission of any bills, the visit/occurrence was completed, documented sufficiently by an appropriate clinician and/or provider, and that the billed claim complies with all regulatory and payor requirements. Examples of process monitoring controls include conducting annual billing compliance testing, user access reviews for billing systems and use of automated daily billing operational indicators. We take prompt corrective action with employees who knowingly fail to follow our billing policies and procedures.
•Patient Recertification – In order to be recertified for an additional home health episode of care, a patient must continue to meet qualifying criteria and have a continuing medical need that requires the skills of a nurse or therapist. Changes in the patient’s condition may require changes to the patient’s medical regimen or modified care protocols within the episode of care. The patient’s progress towards established goals is evaluated prior to recertification. As with the initial episode of care, a recertification requires orders from the patient’s physician. Before any employee recommends recertification to a physician, we conduct a care center level, multidisciplinary care team conference. Specific tools are used to ensure that the patient continues to meet coverage criteria prior to recertifying. Hospice recertification for additional benefit periods of care requires continued demonstration of a terminal prognosis as determined by the hospice physician in collaboration with the attending physician and the interdisciplinary care team.
•Compliance – We develop, implement and maintain ethics and compliance programs as a component of the centralized corporate services provided to our home health, hospice and high acuity-care service lines. Our ethics and compliance program includes a Code of Conduct for our employees, officers, directors, contractors and affiliates and a disclosure program for reporting regulatory or ethical concerns to our compliance team through a confidential hotline, which is augmented by exit surveys of departing employees. We promote a culture of compliance within our company through educational presentations, newsletters and persistent messaging from our senior leadership to our employees stressing the importance of strict compliance with legal requirements and company policies and procedures. Additionally, we have mandatory compliance training and testing for all new employees upon hire and annually for all staff thereafter. We also maintain a robust compliance audit program focusing on key risk areas.
Our Regulatory Environment
We are highly regulated by federal, state and local authorities. The healthcare industry is subject to numerous laws, regulations and rules including, among others, those related to government healthcare participation requirements, licensure and accreditations, reimbursement for patient services, health information privacy and security and Medicare and Medicaid fraud and abuse prohibitions (including, but not limited to, federal statutes and regulations prohibiting kickbacks and other illegal inducements to potential referral sources, self-referrals by physicians and false claims submitted to federal health care programs). Regulations and policies frequently change, and we monitor changes through our internal government affairs department, as well as multiple trade and governmental publications and associations.
Our home health and hospice subsidiaries are certified by CMS and therefore are subject to the rules and regulations of the Medicare system. Additionally, all of our business lines are subject to federal, state and local laws and regulations dealing with issues such as occupational safety, employment, medical leave, insurance, civil rights, discrimination, building codes, data privacy, data security and recordkeeping. We have set forth below a discussion of the regulations that we believe most significantly affect our businesses.
Licensure, Certificates of Need ("CON"), Permits of Approval ("POA") and Facility Need Review ("FNR")
Home health and hospice care centers operate under licenses granted by the health authorities of their respective states. Some states require health care providers (including hospice and home health agencies) to obtain prior state approval for the purchase, construction or expansion of health care locations, capital expenditures exceeding a prescribed amount or changes in services. Additionally, certain states, including a number in which we operate, carefully restrict new entrants into the market based on demographic and/or demonstrative usage of additional providers. These states limit the entry of new providers or services and the expansion of existing providers or services in their markets through a CON, POA or FNR process, which is periodically evaluated and updated as required by applicable state law. For those states that require a CON, POA or FNR, the provider must complete a separate application process establishing a location and must receive required approvals.
To the extent a CON, POA, FNR or other similar approvals are required to expand our operations, our expansion could be adversely affected by the inability to obtain the necessary approvals, changes in the standards applicable to those approvals and possible delays and expenses associated with obtaining those approvals. In some instances, other providers in the market may file opposition to a CON, POA or FNR application, and this could further delay an approval.
In every state where required, our care centers possess a license and/or a CON, POA or FNR issued by the state health authority that determines the local service area for the home health or hospice care centers. Currently, state health authorities in 19 states and the District of Columbia require a CON or, in the State of Arkansas, a POA, in order to establish and operate a home health care center, and state health authorities in 15 states and the District of Columbia require a CON or, in the State of Louisiana, a FNR, to operate a hospice care center.
We operate 233 home health care centers and 55 hospice care centers in the following CON/POA/FNR states as listed below.
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| State | | Home Health | | Hospice |
| Alabama | | 29 | | 10 |
| Arkansas (POA) | | 7 | | — | |
| Florida | | — | | | 7 |
| Georgia | | 56 | | — | |
| Kentucky | | 17 | | — | |
| Louisiana (FNR) | | — | | | 5 |
| Maryland | | 9 | | 3 |
| Mississippi | | 8 | | — | |
| New Jersey | | 2 | | — | |
| New York | | 6 | | — | |
| North Carolina | | 13 | | 7 |
| Rhode Island | | 1 | | 2 |
| South Carolina | | 26 | | — | |
| Tennessee | | 45 | | 15 |
| Washington | | 2 | | — | |
| West Virginia | | 11 | | 6 |
| Washington, DC | | 1 | | — | |
| Total Care Centers in CON/POA/FNR States | | 233 | | 55 |
Medicare Participation: Licensing, Certification and Accreditation
Our care centers must comply with regulations promulgated by the United States Department of Health and Human Services ("HHS") and CMS in order to participate in the Medicare program and receive Medicare payments. Sections 1861(o) and 1891 of the SSA, 42 CFR 484.1 et seq., establish the conditions that a home health agency ("HHA") must meet in order to participate in the Medicare program. Section 1861(dd) of the SSA, 42 CFR 418.1, et seq., establishes the conditions that a hospice provider must meet in order to participate in the Medicare program. Among other things, these regulations, applicable to HHAs and hospices, respectively, known as conditions of participation and/or conditions of payment (“COPs”), relate to the type of facility, its personnel and its standards ofquality medical care as well as its compliance with federal, state and local laws and regulations. Additional COPs applicable to HHAs focus on the safe delivery of quality care provided to patients and the impact
of that care on patient outcomes through the protection and promotion of patients' rights, care planning, delivery and coordination of services and streamlining of regulatory requirements.
CMS has adopted alternative sanction enforcement options which allow CMS (i) to impose temporary management, direct plans of correction or direct trainingsafety and (ii)
assist our Board of Directors and our management in promoting a “culture of quality” throughout our Company. A copy of the Quality of Care Committee’s charter appears on the “Investors” subpage of our website (www.amedisys.com), under the link “Governance.”Compliance and Ethics Committee
The Compliance and Ethics Committee is currently comprised of Bruce D. Perkins (Chair), Molly J. Coye, MD, Jeffrey A. Rideout, MD, and Ivanetta Davis Samuels. Mr. Perkins has been deemed to impose payment suspensionshave significant familiarity and civil monetary penalties in each case on providers outexperience with Medicare compliance due to his over 45 years of compliance with the COPs. CMS engages or has engaged a number of third-party contractors, including Recovery Audit Contractors (“RACs”), Program Safeguard Contractors (“PSCs”), Zone Program Integrity Contractors (“ZPICs”), Uniform Program Integrity Contractors ("UPICs"), Medicaid Integrity Contractors (“MICs”)executive and Supplemental Medical Review Contractors (“SMRCs”), to conduct extensive reviews of claims data and state and federal government health care program laws and regulations applicable to healthcare providers. These audits evaluate the appropriateness of billings submitted for payment. In addition to identifying overpayments, audit contractors can refer suspected violations of law to government enforcement authorities.
All providers are subject to compliance with various federal, state and local statutes and regulationssenior management-level employment experience in the United Stateshealthcare industry. The dual purposes of the Compliance and receive periodic inspectionEthics Committee are to (i) assist the Board in fulfilling its oversight responsibilities relating to (a) the compliance by state licensing agenciesthe Company with all legal requirements to review standards of medical care, equipment and safety. We have dedicated internal resources and utilize external parties when necessary to monitor and ensure compliance with the various applicable federal, state and local laws, rules and regulations, as well as requirements of applicable accrediting organizations.
If we fail to comply with applicable laws and regulations, we could be subjected to liabilities,which it is subject, including criminal penalties, civil penalties (including the loss of our licenses to operate one or more of our businesses) and/or exclusion of a facility from participation in the Medicare, Medicaid and otherspecifically all federal and state health care programs. If any of our facilities werelaws and regulations to lose its accreditation or otherwise lose its certification under the Medicare and Medicaid programs, the facility would be unable to receive reimbursement from the Medicare and Medicaid programs and other payors untilwhich it gains recertification or accreditation. We believe our facilities are in substantial compliance with current applicable federal, state, local and independent review body regulations and standards. The requirements for licensure, certification and accreditation areis subject, to change and, in order to remain qualified, it may become necessary for us to make changes in our facilities, equipment, personnel and services in the future, which could have a material adverse impact on our operations.
Federal and State Anti-Fraud and Abuse Laws and Regulations
As a provider under the Medicare and Medicaid programs, we are subject to various anti-fraudall fraud and abuse laws including the federal Anti-Kickback Statute, the Stark or Physician Self-Referral Law, the False Claims Act, Civil Monetary Penalties Law and various state anti-fraud and abuse laws. These laws govern any health care plans or programs that are funded by the United States government (other than certain federal employee health insurance benefits/programs), as well as certain state health care programs that receive federal funds, such as Medicaid. Our compliance and ethics program is designed to ensure Amedisys meets all applicable federalMedicare program requirements, (b) the design, implementation and state laws and regulations as well as industry standards.
Federal Anti-Kickback Statute ("AKS")
Subject to certain exceptions, the federal AKS prohibits any offer, payment, solicitation or receipt of any form of remuneration to induce or reward the referral of business payable under a government health care program or in return for the purchase, lease, order, arranging for, or recommendation of items or services covered under a government health care program. The law also forbids the offer or transfer of anything of value, including certain waivers of co-payment obligations and deductible amounts, to a beneficiary of Medicare or Medicaid that is likely to influence the beneficiary’s selection of health care providers, again, subject to certain safe harbor exceptions. Violationsexecution of the federal AKS can triggerCompany’s Compliance and Ethics Program, (c) the False Claims Act and Civil Monetary Penalties Law, potentially resulting in civil fines up to $27,018 for each violation, penalties of up to $120,816 (last updated 2023) plus three times the amountactivities of the improper remuneration, imprisonmentChief Compliance Officer and potentially, exclusion from furnishing services under any government health care program. There are also criminal penalties under the AKS, and providers found to be in violationoperation of the federal AKS can be excluded from participation in federal health care programs.
Stark or Physician Self-Referral Law
The Stark Law, also known as the Physician Self-Referral Law, prohibits physicians from referring MedicareCompany’s Compliance Department, and Medicaid patients to entities for the provision of designated health services with which they or any of their immediate family members have a direct or indirect financial relationship, unless an exception to the law's prohibition is met. Sanctions for violating the Stark Law include penalties of up to $29,899 for each violation and up to $199,338 (last updated 2023) for schemes to circumvent the Stark Law restrictions. There are a number of exceptions to the self-referral prohibition, including employment contracts and leases, that may be used so long as the arrangement adheres to certain enumerated requirements. Violations of the Stark Law may also result in payment denials, False Claims Act scrutiny, additional civil monetary penalties and federal program exclusion.
The False Claims Act
The federal False Claims Act ("FCA") prohibits false claims or requests for payment for health care services. Under the FCA, the government may penalize any person who knowingly submits, or participates in submitting, claims for payment to the Federal Government which are false or fraudulent, or which contain false or misleading information. Any person who knowingly makes or uses a false record or statement to avoid paying the Federal Government, or knowingly conceals or avoids an obligation to pay money to the Federal Government, may also be subject to fines under the FCA. Under the FCA, the term “person” means an individual, company or corporation. The term "knowingly" means the person (i) has actual knowledge of the information; (ii) acts in deliberate ignorance of the truth or falsity of the information; or (iii) acts in reckless disregard of the truth or falsity of the information.
The Federal Government has used the FCA to prosecute Medicare and other governmental program fraud in areas such as violations of the federal Anti-Kickback Statute or the Stark Law, coding errors, billing for services not provided and submitting false cost reports. The FCA has also been used to prosecute people or entities that bill services at a higher reimbursement rate than is allowed and that bill for care that is not medically necessary. In addition to government enforcement, the FCA authorizes private citizens to bring qui tam or “whistleblower” lawsuits, greatly extending the practical reach of the FCA. The per-claim maximum penalty is $27,018 (last updated 2023).
The Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act of 2009 (“FERA”) amended the FCA with the intent of enhancing the powers of government enforcement authorities and whistleblowers to bring FCA cases. In particular, FERA attempts to clarify that liability may be established not only for false claims submitted directly to the government, but also for claims submitted to government contractors and grantees. FERA also seeks to clarify that liability exists for attempts to avoid repayment of overpayments, including improper retention of federal funds. FERA also included amendments to FCA procedures, expanding the government’s ability to use the Civil Investigative Demand process to investigate defendants, and permitting government complaints and intervention to relate back to the filing of the whistleblower’s original complaint. FERA is likely to increase both the volume and liability exposure of FCA cases brought against health care providers.
In the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (enacted in 2010), Congress enacted requirements related to identifying and returning overpayments made under Medicare and Medicaid. CMS finalized regulations regarding this so-called “60-day rule,” which requires providers to report and return Medicare and Medicaid overpayments within 60 days of identifying the overpayment. A provider who retains identified overpayments beyond 60 days may be liable under the FCA. “Identification” occurs when a person “has, or should have through the exercise of reasonable diligence,” identified and quantified the amount of an overpayment. The final rule also established a six-year lookback period, meaning overpayments must be reported and returned if a person identifies the overpayment within six years of the date the overpayment was received. Providers must report and return overpayments even if they did not cause the overpayment.
In addition to the FCA, the Federal Government may use several criminal statutes to prosecute the submission of false or fraudulent claims for payment to the Federal Government. Many states have similar false claims statutes that impose liability for the types of acts prohibited by the False Claims Act. As part of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (the “DRA”), Congress provides states an incentive to adopt state false claims acts consistent with the federal FCA. Additionally, the DRA requires providers who receive $5 million or more annually from Medicaid to include information on federal and state false claims acts, whistleblower protections and the providers’ own policies on detecting and preventing fraud in their written employee policies.
Civil Monetary Penalties Law
HHS may impose civil monetary penalties ("CMP") for a variety of civil offenses related to federal health care programs. They may be imposed upon any person or entity who presents, or causes to be presented, certain ineligible claims for medical items or services, for providing improper inducements to beneficiaries to obtain services, for payments to limit services to patients and for offenses related to relationships with excluded individuals, among other things.
Maximum CMP amounts increased in 2023. For example, the penalty for knowing and willful solicitation, receipt, offer or payment of remuneration for referring an individual for a service or for purchasing, leasing or ordering an item to be paid for by a federal health care program increased from $112,131 to $120,816, and the CMP for beneficiary inducement increased from $22,427 to $24,164 per occurrence.
State Laws
In addition to federal laws, some states in which we operate generally have laws that prohibit kickbacks in exchange for referrals, certain direct or indirect payments or fee-splitting arrangements between health care providers, improper physician referrals, beneficiary inducements and false or improperly billed claims. The available guidance and enforcement activity associated with such state laws vary considerably but, in some cases, may be stricter than federal law.
Federal and State Privacy and Security Laws
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 ("HIPAA") requires us to comply with standards for the exchange of health information within our company and with third parties, such as payors, business associates and patients. These include standards for common health care transactions, such as claims information, plan eligibility and payment information, standards for the use of electronic signatures and unique identifiers for providers, employers, health plans and individuals as well as standards for privacy, security and breach notification and enforcement.
The HIPAA transaction regulations establish form, format and data content requirements for most electronic health care transactions, such as health care claims that are submitted electronically. The HIPAA privacy regulations establish comprehensive requirements(d) matters relating to the useCompany’s Corporate Compliance Plan and disclosureCode of protected health information. The HIPAA security regulations establish minimum standards forEthical Business Conduct; and (ii) assist the protectionBoard and Company management in establishing an appropriate “tone at the top” and promoting a strong “culture of protected health informationcompliance” throughout the Company, while also recognizing that is stored or transmitted electronically. The HIPAA breach notification regulations establishother Board committees assist the applicable requirements for notifying individuals, HHSBoard in fulfilling its oversight responsibilities relating to various areas of legal and the media in the event of a data breach affecting protected health information. Violationsregulatory compliance. A copy of the privacy, securityCompliance and breach notification regulations are punishable by civil and criminal penalties and administrative fines and penalties and/or additional reporting and oversight obligations if required to enter into a resolution agreement and corrective action plan with HHS to settle allegations of HIPAA non-compliance.
Currently, civil monetary penalties for HIPAA violations can range from $137 per violation to a maximum fine of $2.067 million for multiple violations of the same provision during a calendar year. To date, the largest penalty imposed by HHS following a data breach is $16 million. State attorneys general may also bring civil enforcement actions under HIPAA, and attorneys general are actively engaged in enforcement. These penalties could be in addition to other penalties assessed by a state for a breach which would be considered reportable under a particular state’s data breach notification laws.
Changes to HIPAA have stimulated increased enforcement activity and enhanced the potential that health care providers will be subject to financial penalties for violations of HIPAA. In addition, the Secretary of HHS is required to perform periodic audits to ensure covered entities (and their business associates, as that term is defined under HIPAA) comply with the applicable HIPAA requirements, increasing the likelihood that a HIPAA violation will result in an enforcement action.
In addition to the federal HIPAA regulations, most states also have laws that protect the confidentiality of health information and other personally identifiable information, and these laws may be broader in scope with respect to protected health information and other personal information than HIPAA. Some of these laws grant individuals rights with respect to personal information. We may be required to expend significant resources to comply with these laws. Further, all 50 states, the U.S. territories and the District of Columbia have adopted data breach notification laws that impose, in varying degrees, an obligation to notify affected persons and/or state regulators in the event of a data breach or compromise, including when their personal information has or may have been accessed by an unauthorized person. Some state breach notification laws may also impose physical and electronic security requirements regarding the safeguarding of personal information, such as social security numbers and bank and credit card account numbers. Violation of state privacy, security and breach notification laws can trigger significant monetary penalties. In addition, certain states’ privacy, security and data breach laws, including, for example, the California Consumer Privacy Act, as amended by the California Privacy Rights Act, include private rights of action that may expose us to private litigation regarding our privacy practices and significant damages awards or settlements in civil litigation.
U.S. Food and Drug Administration ("FDA") Regulation
The FDA regulates medical device user facilities, which include home health care providers. FDA regulations require user facilities to report patient deaths and serious injuries to the FDA and/or the manufacturer of a device used by the facility if the device may have caused or contributed to the death or serious injury of any patient. FDA regulations also require user facilities to maintain files related to adverse events and to establish and implement appropriate procedures to ensure compliance with the above reporting and recordkeeping requirements. User facilities are subject to FDA inspection, and noncompliance with applicable requirements may result in warning letters or sanctions including civil monetary penalties, injunction, product seizure, criminal fines and/or imprisonment.
The Improving Medicare Post-Acute Care Transformation Act
In October 2014, the Improving Medicare Post-Acute Care Transformation Act (“IMPACT Act”) was signed into law requiring the reporting of standardized patient assessment data for quality improvement, payment and discharge planning purposes across the spectrum of post-acute care providers (“PACs”), including skilled nursing facilities and home health agencies. The IMPACT Act requires PACs to report: (1) standardized patient assessment data at admission and discharge; (2) quality measures, including functional status, skin integrity, medication reconciliation, incidence of major falls and patient preference regarding treatment and discharge; and (3) resource use measures, including Medicare spending per beneficiary, discharge to community and hospitalization rates of potentially preventable readmissions. Failure to report such data when required would subject a facility to a two percent reduction in market basket prices then in effect.
The IMPACT Act further requires HHS and the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (“MedPAC”), a commission chartered by Congress to advise it on Medicare payment issues, to study alternative PAC payment models, including payment based upon individual patient characteristics and not care setting, with corresponding Congressional reports required based on such analysis. The IMPACT Act also includes provisions impacting Medicare-certified hospices, including: (1) increasing survey frequency for Medicare-certified hospices to once every 36 months; (2) imposing a medical review process for facilities with a high percentage of stays in excess of 180 days; and (3) updating the annual aggregate Medicare payment cap.
Review Choice Demonstration for Home Health Services ("RCD")
CMS' RCD gives HHAs in the demonstration states three options in the initial selection period: pre-claim review of all claims, post-payment review of all claims or minimal post-payment review with a 25% payment reduction for all home health services. Under the pre-claim review and post-payment review options, provider claims are reviewed for every episode of care until the appropriate claim approval rate (90% based on a minimum of ten pre-claim requests or claims submitted) is reached. Further, once the appropriate claim approval rate is reached and maintained for six months, a provider can elect to opt out of pre-claim review or post-payment review of all claims and choose selective post-payment review, a spot check of a statistically valid random sample of claims determined by the Medicare Administrative Contractor ("MAC") to ensure continued compliance. Amedisys has elected the pre-claim review option. The demonstration initially applied to HHA providers in Florida, Illinois, North Carolina, Ohio and Texas, with the option to expand after five years to other states in the Medicare Administrative Contractor Jurisdiction M (Palmetto). CMS added Oklahoma to the demonstration effective December 31, 2023.
Targeted Probe and Educate Program ("TPE")
CMS' TPE program is designed to help reduce provider claim denials and educate providers on appropriate billing practices. Under the TPE program, MACs use data analysis to identify providers who have high claim error rates, unusual billing practices or provide services that have high national error rates. If a provider is selected for a TPE review by a MAC, the initial volume of claims reviewed is limited to 20 to 40 claims. If the provider is deemed compliant, it will not be reviewedEthics Committee’s charter appears on the
particular topic“Investors” subpage of our website (www.amedisys.com), under the link “Governance.”Stockholder Recommendation of Nominees
Pursuant to our Corporate Governance Guidelines, stockholders may recommend a nominee for that review for one year; however, if errors are identified, the provider has 45 days to make changes and improvements. If a provider cannot correct the errors after the 45-day period, it will be referred to one-on-one education sessions. The TPE process can include up to three rounds of claims review, if necessary, with corresponding provider education and a subsequent period to allow for improvement. If results do not improve sufficiently after three rounds, the MAC may refer the provider to CMS for further action which may include 100% prepay review, extrapolation, referral to a Recovery Auditor and/or referral for revocation from the Medicare program.
Home Health Value-Based Purchasing
On January 1, 2016, CMS implemented Home Health Value-Based Purchasing ("HHVBP"). The HHVBP model was designed to give Medicare-certified home health agencies incentives or penalties in order to provide higher quality and more efficient care. In November 2021, CMS issued the Calendar Year 2022 Home Health Final Rule for Medicare home health providers
which provided for the expansion of the HHVBP model to all 50 states beginning January 1, 2023 with calendar year 2023 being the first performance year and calendar year 2025 being the first payment year with a proposed maximum payment adjustment, up or down, of 5%.
HHAs receive adjustments to their Medicare fee-for-service payments based on their performance against a set of quality measures, relative to their peers’ performance. Performance on these quality measures in a specified year (performance year) impacts payment adjustments in a later year (payment year). Cohorts are determined based on each HHA’s unique beneficiary count in the prior calendar year. HHAs are assigned to either a nationwide larger-volume cohort or a nationwide smaller-volume cohort in order to group HHAs that are of similar size and are more likely to receive scores on the same set of measures for purposes of setting benchmarks and achievement thresholds and determining payment adjustments.
Home Health Payment Reform
On February 9, 2018, Congress passed the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 ("BBA of 2018"), which provided for a targeted extension of the home health rural add-on payment, a reduction of the 2020 market basket update, modification of eligibility documentation requirements and reform to the Home Health Prospective Payment System ("HHPPS"). The HHPPS reform included the following parameters: for home health units of service beginning on January 1, 2020, a 30-day payment system was to be applied; the transition to the 30-day payment system was to be budget neutral; and CMS was to conduct at least one Technical Expert Panel during 2018, prior to any notice and comment rulemaking process, related to the design of any new case-mix adjustment model.
The Calendar Year 2019 Home Health Final Rule updated the Medicare HHPPS and finalized the implementation of an alternative case-mix adjustment methodology, PDGM, which became effective on January 1, 2020. PDGM adjusted payments to home health agencies based on patient characteristics for 30-day periods of care. While the payment changes were to be implemented in a budget neutral manner to the industry, the ultimate impact variedconsideration by provider based on factors including patient mix and admission source. Additionally, CMS made assumptions about behavior changes that were expected to occur as a result of the transition to PDGM. The behavior change assumptions were finalized in the Calendar Year 2020 Home Health Final Rule released on October 31, 2019 and resulted in a 4.36% reduction to reimbursement. The behavior changes were related to coding practices, low utilization payment adjustment ("LUPA") management and co-morbidities. CMS is required by law to analyze data for calendar years 2020-2026, retrospectively, to determine the impact of the difference between assumed and actual behavior changes and to make any such payment changes as are necessary to offset or supplement the adjustments based on anticipated behavior.
On October 31, 2022, CMS issued the Home Health Final Rule for Medicare home health providers for calendar year 2023, which finalized a methodology for analyzing differences between assumed and actual behavior changes and determined that a permanent adjustment was needed. The 2023 Final Rule included a -3.5% permanent reduction to reimbursement based on the difference between assumed and actual behavior changes resulting from the implementation of PDGM. The -3.5% permanent adjustment was derived from a -3.925% adjustment which was only applied to the 30-day payment rate and not the low utilization payment adjustment. The -3.925% was only half of the total proposed adjustment. The remaining adjustment was to be considered in future rulemaking.
On July 5, 2023, the National Association for Home Care and Hospice ("NAHC"), the leading national home health trade association, filed suit against CMS in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia over the implementation of the payment cuts in the Calendar Year 2023 Home Health Final Rule effective January 1, 2023; that litigation remains pending.
On November 1, 2023, CMS issued the Home Health Final Rule for Medicare home health providers for calendar year 2024. CMS estimates that the final rule will result in an 0.8% increase in payments to home health providers. This increase is the result of a 3.0% payment update (3.3% market basket adjustment less a 0.3% productivity adjustment) and an increase of 0.4% for the update to the fixed-dollar loss ratio used in determining outlier payments offset by a permanent adjustment of -2.6% based on the difference between assumed and actual behavior changes resulting from the implementation of PDGM. Similar to the 2023 permanent adjustment, the -2.6% permanent adjustment was derived from a -2.890% adjustment which was only applied to the 30-day payment rate and not the low utilization payment adjustment. The -2.890% was only half of the total proposed adjustment. The remaining adjustment is to be considered in future rulemaking. Based on our analysis of the final rule, we expect our impact to be in line with the 0.8% increase.
In addition to permanent adjustments, CMS also has the discretion to make temporary adjustments through calendar year 2026; however, CMS has elected not to implement a temporary adjustment for calendar year 2024.
Environmental and Climate Change Matters
We are committed to transparency around our environmental footprint and climate-related risks and opportunities. We have adopted an integrated approach to address the impacts of climate change on our business, with cross-disciplinary teams responsible for managing climate-related activities, initiatives and policies. Strategies and progress toward our goals are reviewed with senior leadership and the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee of our Board
by sending the following information to our Corporate Secretary, at 3854 American Way, Suite A, Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70816, who will forward the information to the Chairman of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee:Name, mailing address and telephone number of the stockholder;
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| Item 11. | Executive Compensation |
COMPENSATION DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS
This Compensation Discussion and Analysis (“CD&A”) outlines our stockholders approvedexecutive compensation philosophy, objectives and processes. It explains the Merger, or that, if completed, it will be exactly on the terms set forth in the Merger Agreement or within the expected time frame.
We may not complete the proposed Merger within the time frame we anticipate or at all, which could have an adverse effect on our business, financial results and/or operations.
The proposed Merger may not be completed within the expected timeframe, or at all, as a result of various factors and conditions, some of which may be beyond our control. If the Merger is not completed for any reason, our stockholders will not receive any payment for their shares of our common stock in connection with the Merger. Instead, we will remain a public company, our common stock will continue to be listed and traded on The Nasdaq Global Select Market and registered under the
Exchange Act, and we will be required to continue to file periodic reports with the SEC. Moreover, our ongoing business may be materially adversely affected, and we would be subject to a number of risks, including the following:
•we may experience negative reactions from the financial markets, including negative impacts on our stock price, and it is uncertain when, if ever, the price of our shares would return to the prices at which our shares currently trade;
•we may experience negative publicity, which could have an adverse effect on our ongoing operations including, but not limited to, retaining and attracting employees, customers, partners, suppliers and others with whom we do business;
•we will still be required to pay certain significant costs relating to the Merger, such as legal, accounting, financial advisory, printing and other professional services fees, which may relate to activities that we would not have undertaken other than in connection with the Merger;
•we may be required to pay a termination fee to UnitedHealth Group of $125,000,000, as required under the Merger Agreement under certain circumstances;
•we may be required to reimburse UnitedHealth Group for the $106,000,000 termination fee payment that UnitedHealth Group, on our behalf, paid to Option Care Health Inc. ("OPCH") in connection with the termination of the Agreement and Plan of Merger (the "OPCH Merger Agreement"), dated as of May 3, 2023, by and among Amedisys, OPCH and Uintah Merger Sub, Inc. ("OPCH Merger Sub") under certain circumstances;
•while the Merger Agreement is in effect, we are subject to restrictions on our business activities, including, among other things, restrictions on our ability to engage in certain kinds of material transactions that would reasonably be expected to materially delay or prevent the consummation of the transaction contemplateddecision making process used by the Merger Agreement, which could prevent us from pursuing strategic business opportunities, taking actions with respect to our business that we may consider advantageous and responding effectively and/or timely to competitive pressures and industry developments, and may, as a result, materially adversely affect our business, resultsCompensation Committee of operations and financial condition;
•matters relating to the Merger require substantial commitments of time and resources by our management, which could result in the distraction of management from ongoing business operations and pursuing other opportunities that could have been beneficial to us; and
•we may commit significant time and resources to defending against litigation related to the Merger.
If the Merger is not consummated, the risks described above may materialize, and they may have a material adverse effect on our business operations, financial results and stock price, particularly to the extent that the current market price of our common stock reflects an assumption that the Merger will be completed.
We will be subject to various uncertainties while the Merger is pending that may cause disruption and may make it more difficult to maintain relationships with employees, customers and other third-party business partners.
Our efforts to complete the Merger could cause substantial disruptions in, and create uncertainty surrounding, our business, which may materially adversely affect our results of operations and our business. Uncertainty as to whether the Merger will be completed may affect our ability to recruit prospective employees or to retain and motivate existing employees. Employee retention may be particularly challenging while the Merger is pending because employees may experience uncertainty about their roles following the Merger. As mentioned above, a substantial amount of our management’s and employees’ attention is being directed toward the completion of the Merger and thus is being diverted from our day-to-day operations. Uncertainty as to our future could adversely affect our business and our relationship with customers and potential customers. For example, customers, suppliers and other third parties may defer decisions concerning working with us or seek to change existing business relationships with us. Changes to or termination of existing business relationships could adversely affect our revenue, earnings and financial condition, as well as the market price of our common stock. The adverse effects of the pendency of the Merger could be exacerbated by any delays in completion of the Merger or termination of the Merger Agreement.
In certain instances, the Merger Agreement requires us to pay a termination fee to UnitedHealth Group, which could affect the decisions of a third-party considering making an alternative acquisition proposal.
Under the terms of the Merger Agreement, we may be required to pay UnitedHealth Group a termination fee of $125,000,000 under specified conditions, including in the event the Merger Agreement is terminated due to a recommendation change by our board of directors, the termination of the Merger Agreement by our board of directors in order for us to enter into a definitive agreement with a third-party for an alternative transaction with respect to an unsolicited Amedisys Superior Proposal or under certain circumstances where a proposal for an alternative transaction has been made to us and, within 12 months following
termination, we enter into a definitive agreement providing for an alternative transaction or consummate an alternative transaction. Further, under specified circumstances, we may be required to reimburse UnitedHealth Group for the $106,000,000 termination fee payment that UnitedHealth Group, on our behalf, paid to OPCH in connection with the termination of the OPCH Merger Agreement. These payments could affect the structure, pricing and terms proposed by a third-party seeking to acquire or merge with us and could discourage a third-party from making a competing acquisition proposal, including a proposal that would be more favorable to our stockholders than the Merger.
We have incurred, and will continue to incur, direct and indirect costs as a result of the Merger.
We have incurred, and will continue to incur, significant costs and expenses, including regulatory costs, fees for professional services and other transaction costs in connection with the Merger, for which we will have received little or no benefit if the Merger is not completed. There are a number of factors beyond our control that could affect the total amount or the timing of these costs and expenses. Many of these fees and costs will be payable by us even if the Merger is not completed and may relate to activities that we would not have undertaken other than to complete the Merger.
Litigation challenging the Merger Agreement may prevent the Merger from being consummated within the expected timeframe or at all.
Following the announcement of the Merger and the filing of the Definitive Proxy Statement, purported stockholders filed complaints and sent Amedisys demand letters alleging that the Definitive Proxy Statement omitted material information that rendered it misleading or incomplete in violation of federal securities laws and that the Amedisys Board breached their fiduciary duties. Certain of the complaints have sought, among other things, an injunction enjoining the consummation of the Merger unless and until certain additional information is disclosed to Amedisys stockholders, rescissory damages, an accounting to the plaintiff for all damages suffered as a result of Amedisys' and Amedisys' Board's alleged wrongdoing, costs of the action including plaintiffs' attorneys' fees and experts' fees, and other relief the court may deem just and proper. Amedisys also received a demand from a purported stockholder in connection with the Definitive Proxy Statement seeking to inspect certain Amedisys corporate books and records under Section 220 of the Delaware General Corporation Law. See the Company's Current Report on Form 8-K dated September 1, 2023 for additional information. Amedisys believes that the allegations in the complaints, demand letters and Section 220 demand letters lack merit and that Amedisys' disclosures have at all times complied with the applicable laws.
Nevertheless, lawsuits may continue to be filed against us, our Board of Directors or other parties to(the “Compensation Committee”), the Merger Agreement, challengingreasoning behind our executive compensation program, and, more specifically, the Merger or making other claims in connection therewith. Such lawsuits may be brought by our purported stockholders and may seek, among other things, to enjoin consummation ofactions the Merger. One of the conditions to the consummation of the Merger is the absence of any order or law that has the effect of enjoining or otherwise prohibiting the consummation of the Merger. As such, if the plaintiffs in such lawsuits are successful in obtaining an injunction prohibiting the defendants from completing the Merger on the agreed upon terms, then such injunction may prevent the Merger from becoming effective, or from becoming effective within the expected timeframe.
Risks Related to Reimbursement
Federal and state changes to reimbursement and other aspects of Medicare and Medicaid could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Our net service revenue is primarily derived from Medicare, which accounted for 73%, 74% and 75% of our consolidated net service revenue during 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively. Payments received from Medicare are subject to changes made through federal legislation. When such changes are implemented, we must also modify our internal billing processes and procedures accordingly, which can require significant time and expense. These changes, as further detailed in Part I, Item 1, “Business: Payment for Our Services,” can include changes to base payments and adjustments for home health services, changes to cap limits and per diem rates for hospice services and changes to Medicare eligibility and documentation requirements or changes designed to restrict utilization. Any such changes, including retroactive adjustments, adopted in the future by CMS could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Section 6407 of the Affordable Care Act, as implemented by 42 CFR § 424.22, added Medicare requirements for face-to-face encounters to support claims for home health services. The requirements for face-to-face encounters continue to be one of the most complex issues in the industry and can be the source of claims denials if not fulfilled. Section 6407(d) of the Affordable Care Act also provided that the requirements for face-to-face encounters in the provisions described above shall apply in the case of physicians making certifications for home health services under title XIX of the Act (Medicaid) in the same manner and to the same extent as such requirements apply under title XVIII (Medicare).
There are continuing efforts to reform governmental health care programs that could result in major changes in the health care delivery and reimbursement system on a national and state level, including changes directly impacting the reimbursement systems for our home health and hospice care centers. The U.S. federal budget is subject to change, and the Medicare program is frequently mentioned as a target for spending cuts. Within the Medicare program, the hospice benefit is often specifically targeted for cuts. The full impact on our business of any future cuts in Medicare or other programs is uncertain. Though we cannot predict what, if any, reform proposals will be adopted, health care reform and legislation may have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows through decreasing payments made for our services.
We could also be affected adversely by the continuing efforts of governmental payors to contain health care costs. We cannot assure you that reimbursement payments under governmental payor programs, including Medicare supplemental insurance policies, will remain at levels comparable to present levels or will be sufficient to cover the costs allocable to patients eligible for reimbursement pursuant to these programs. Any such changes could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Future cost containment initiatives undertaken by private third-party payors may limit our future revenue and profitability.
Our non-Medicare revenue and profitability are affected by continuing efforts of third-party payors to maintain or reduce costs of health care by lowering payment rates, narrowing the scope of covered services, increasing case management review of services and negotiating pricing. There can be no assurance that third-party payors will make timely payments for our services, and there is no assurance that we will continue to maintain our current payor or revenue mix. We are continuing our efforts to develop our non-Medicare sources of revenue. Any changes in payment levels from current or future third-party payors could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Possible changes in the case mix of patients, as well as payor mix and payment methodologies, could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Our revenue is determined by a number of factors, including our mix of patients and the rates of payment among payors. Changes in the case mix of our patients, payment methodologies or the payor mix among Medicare, Medicaid and private payors could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Our failure to negotiate favorable managed care contracts, or our loss of existing favorable managed care contracts, could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
One of our strategies is to diversify our payor sources by increasing the business we do with managed care companies. We strive to put in place favorable contracts with managed care payors; however, we may not be successful in these efforts. Additionally, there is a risk that the favorable managed care contracts that we put in place may be terminated. Managed care contracts typically permit the payor to terminate the contract without cause, on very short notice, typically 60 days, which can provide payors leverage to reduce volume or obtain favorable pricing. Our failure to negotiate and put in place favorable managed care contracts, or our failure to maintain in place favorable managed care contracts, could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Quality reporting requirements may negatively impact Medicare reimbursement.
Hospice quality reporting was mandated by the Patient Protection and Affordable Health Care Act and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act ("PPACA"), which directs the Secretary to establish quality reporting requirements for hospice programs. Failure to submit required quality data will result in a specified reduction to the market basket percentage increase for that fiscal year. This quality reporting program is currently “pay-for-reporting,” meaning it is the act of submitting data that determines compliance with program requirements.
On July 28, 2023, CMS issued a final rule (CMS-1787-F) which updated Medicare hospice payments and the aggregate cap amount for fiscal year 2024 (the "FY 2024 Hospice Final Rule") in accordance with existing statutory and regulatory requirements. The FY 2024 Hospice Final Rule also finalized the codification of the Hospice Quality Reporting Program ("HQRP") data submission threshold policy adopted in the fiscal year ("FY") 2016 Hospice Final Rule at §418. Section 1814(i)(5)(A)(i) of the Act was amended to change the payment reduction for failing to meet hospice quality reporting requirements from 2 to 4 percentage points. Therefore, beginning in FY 2024 and for each subsequent year, hospices that fail to meet quality reporting requirements will receive a 4 percentage point reduction to the annual hospice payment update percentage increase for the year. The FY 2024 rate for hospices that do not submit the required quality data would be updated to -0.9%, which is the FY 2024 hospice payment update percentage of 3.1% minus 4 percentage points.
Section 1895(b)(3)(B)(v) of the Social Security Act requires the submission of quality data by home health agencies. Failure to submit quality data will result in a 2% reduction in the home health agency's annual home health payment update percentage. This pay-for-reporting requirement was implemented on January 1, 2007. In the Calendar Year 2015 Home Health Final Rule, CMS defined a more explicit “Pay-for-Reporting Performance Requirement” by which provider compliance with quality reporting requirements can be measured. In the Calendar Year 2016 Home Health Final Rule, CMS required home health agencies to report prescribed quality assessment data for a minimum of 90% of all patients.
The Improving Medicare Post-Acute Care Transformation Act of 2014 (the “IMPACT Act”) requires the submission of standardized data by home health agencies and other providers. Specifically, the IMPACT Act requires, among other significant activities, the reporting of standardized patient assessment data with regard to quality measures, resource use and other measures. Failure to report data as required will subject providers to a 2% reduction in market basket prices then in effect.
There can be no assurance that all of our agencies will continue to meet quality reporting requirements in the future which may result in one or more of our agencies seeing a reduction in its Medicare reimbursements. Regardless, we, like other healthcare providers, are likely to incur additional expenses in an effort to comply with additional and changing quality reporting requirements.
Value-based purchasing may negatively impact Medicare reimbursement.
Both government and private payors are increasingly looking to value-based purchasing to contain costs. Value-based purchasing focuses on quality of outcomes and efficiency of care, rather than quantity of care. The first performance year of the expanded value-based purchasing model began on January 1, 2023, and the model has been expanded to all 50 states. Under the expanded model, home health agencies receive adjustments to their Medicare fee-for-service payments based on their performance against a set of quality measures, relative to their peers' performance. Performance on these quality measures in a specified year (performance year) impacts payment adjustments in a later year (payment year). CMS may also create a similar plan for hospices in the future. Government and private payors’ implementation of value-based purchasing requirements could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. The Calendar Year 2024 Home Health Final Rule noted that agencies certified in the value-based purchasing model before January 1, 2022 will have a reduction or an increase to their Medicare payments by up to 5% based on their performance on specified quality measures, beginning in CY 2025.
Any economic downturn, deepening of an economic downturn, continued deficit spending by the Federal Government or state budget pressures may result in a reduction in payments and covered services.
Adverse developments in the United States could lead to a reduction in Federal Government expenditures, including governmentally funded programs in which we participate, such as Medicare and Medicaid. In addition, if at any time the Federal Government is not able to meet its debt payments unless the federal debt ceiling is raised, and legislation increasing the debt ceiling is not enacted, the Federal Government may stop or delay making payments on its obligations, including funding for government programs in which we participate, such as Medicare and Medicaid. Failure of the government to make payments under these programs could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. Further, any failure by the United States Congress to complete the federal budget process and fund government operations may result in a Federal Government shutdown, potentially causing us to incur substantial costs without reimbursement under the Medicare program, which could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. As an example, the failure of the 2011 Joint SelectCompensation Committee to meet its Deficit Reduction goal resulted in a reduction in Medicare home health and hospice payments of 2% beginning April 1, 2013 ("sequestration" - suspended from May 1, 2020 through March 31, 2022; reinstated at 1% for the period April 1, 2022 through June 30, 2022 and at 2% thereafter).
Historically, state budget pressures have resulted in reductions in state spending. Given that Medicaid outlays are a significant component of state budgets, we can expect continuing cost containment pressures on Medicaid outlays for our services.
In addition, sustained unfavorable economic conditions may affect the number of patients enrolled in managed care programs and the profitability of managed care companies, which could result in reduced payment rates and could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Risks Related to our Operations
A shortage of qualified nursing staff and other clinicians, such as therapists and nurse practitioners, could materially impact our ability to attract, train and retain qualified personnel and could increase operating costs.
We compete for qualified personnel with other healthcare providers. Our ability to attract and retain clinicians depends on several factors, including our ability to provide these personnel with attractive assignments and competitive salaries and benefits. We cannot be assured we will succeed in any of these areas. In addition, there are shortages of qualified health care personnel in some of our markets. As a result, we may face higher costs of attracting clinicians and providing them with more attractive benefit packages than we originally anticipated, or we may have to utilize contract clinicians, both of which could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. In addition, if we expand our operations into geographic areas where health care providers historically have been unionized, or if any of our care center employees become unionized, being subject to a collective bargaining agreement may have a negative impact on our ability to timely and successfully recruit qualified personnel and may increase our operating costs. In some circumstances, we may have to hire contract clinicians to fulfill staffing needs, which could increase the risk of an adverse patient event. Generally, if we are unable to attract and retain clinicians, the quality of our services may decline, and we could lose patients and referral sources, which could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
We may be more vulnerable to the effects of a public health emergency than other businesses due to the nature of our patient population and the physical proximity required by our operations, which could harm our business disproportionately to other businesses.
The majority of our patients are older individuals and/or individuals with complex medical challenges or multiple ongoing diseases, many of whom may be more vulnerable than the general public during a pandemic or in a public health emergency. Our employees are also at greater risk of contracting contagious diseases due to their increased exposure to vulnerable individuals. Our employees could also have difficulty attending to our patients if a program of social distancing or quarantine is instituted in response to a public health emergency. In addition, we may expand existing internal policies in a manner that may have a similar effect. If the virus that causes COVID-19 and its potentially more contagious variants cause an additional resurgence of infections of COVID-19, if new variants that are resistant to government approved COVID-19 vaccinations continue to emerge, or if an influenza or other pandemic were to occur, we could suffer significant losses to our patient population or a reduction in the availability of our employees and caregivers, and we could be required to hire replacements for affected workers at an inflated cost. Accordingly, public health emergencies could have a disproportionate material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Because we are limited in our ability to control rates received for our services, our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows could be materially adversely affected if we are not able to maintain or reduce our costs to provide such services.
As Medicare is our primary payor and rates are established through federal legislation, we have to manage our costs of providing care to achieve a desired level of profitability. Additionally, non-Medicare rates are difficult for us to negotiate as such payors are under pressure to reduce their own costs. As a result, we manage our costs in order to achieve a desired level of profitability, including, but not limited to, centralization of various processes, the use of technology and management of the number of employees utilized. If we are not able to continue to streamline our processes and reduce our costs, our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows could be materially adversely affected.
If we are unable to consistently provide high quality of care, our business will be adversely impacted.
Providing quality patient care is the cornerstone of our business. We believe that hospitals, physicians and other referral sources refer patients to us in large part because of our reputation for delivering quality care. Clinical quality has become increasingly important within our industry. Medicare imposes a financial penalty upon hospitals that have excessive rates of patient readmissions within 30 days from hospital discharge. We believe this regulation provides a competitive advantage to home health providers who can differentiate themselves based upon quality, particularly by achieving low patient acute care hospitalization readmission rates and by implementing disease management programs designed to be responsive to the needs of patients served by referring hospitals. We are focused intently upon improving our patient outcomes, particularly our patient acute care hospitalization readmission rates. If we should fail to attain our goals regarding acute care hospitalization readmission rates and other quality metrics, we expect our ability to generate referrals would be adversely impacted, which could have a material adverse effect upon our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Additionally, Medicare has established consumer-facing websites, Home Health Compare and Hospice Compare, that present data regarding our performance on certain quality measures compared to state and national averages. Failure to achieve or exceed these averages may negatively affect our rates of reimbursement and our ability to generate referrals, which could have a material adverse effect upon our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
If we are unable to maintain relationships with existing patient referral sources, our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows could be materially adversely affected.
Our success depends on referrals from physicians, hospitals and other sources in the communities we serve and on our ability to maintain good relationships with existing referral sources. Our referral sources are not (and cannot be) contractually obligated to refer patients to us and may refer their patients to other providers. Our growth and profitability depend, in part, on our ability to establish and maintain close working relationships with these patient referral sources and to increase awareness and acceptance of the benefits of home health and hospice care by our referral sources and their patients. Our loss of, or failure to maintain, existing relationships or our failure to develop new referral relationships could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Our industry is highly competitive, with few barriers to entry in certain states.
There are few barriers to entry in home health and hospice markets that do not require a CON, POA or FNR. Our primary competition comes from local privately-owned, publicly-owned and hospital-owned health care providers. We compete based on the availability of personnel, the quality of services, expertise of visiting staff and, in certain instances, on the price of our services. In addition, we compete with a number of non-profit organizations and tax-supported governmental agencies that finance acquisitions and capital expenditures on a tax-exempt or tax-favorable basis or receive charitable contributions that are unavailable to us. Increased competition in the future may limit our ability to maintain or increase our market share.
Further, the introduction of new and enhanced service offerings by others, in combination with industry consolidation and the development of strategic relationships by our competitors (including mergers of competitors with each other and with insurers) could cause a decline in revenue or loss of market acceptance of our services or make our services less attractive.
Managed care organizations and other third-party payors continue to consolidate, which enhances their ability to influence the delivery of health care services. Consequently, the health care needs of patients in the United States are increasingly served by a smaller number of managed care organizations. These organizations generally enter into service agreements with a limited number of providers. Our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows could be materially adversely affected if these organizations terminate us as a provider and/or engage our competitors as a preferred or exclusive provider. In addition, should private payors, including managed care payors, seek to negotiate additional discounted fee structures or the assumption by health care providers of all or a portion of the financial risk through prepaid capitation arrangements, our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows could be materially adversely affected.
If we are unable to react competitively to new developments, our operating results may suffer. State CON, POA or FNR laws often limit the ability of competitors to enter into a given market, are not uniform throughout the United States and are frequently the subject of efforts to limit or repeal such laws. If states remove existing CONs, POAs or FNRs, we could face increased competition in these states. There can be no assurances that other states will not seek to eliminate or limit their existing CON, POA or FNR programs, which could lead to increased competition in these states. Further, we cannot assure you that we will be able to compete successfully against current or future competitors, which could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
The success of our high acuity care segment depends on our ability to enter into capitation and other forms of risk-based contracts with managed care health plans. If we are unsuccessful in obtaining these contracts or if we are unsuccessful in managing costs associated with risk-based contracts, our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows could be materially adversely affected.
Our acquisition of Contessa not only established the foundation for our high acuity care segment, but it also added key infrastructure to enable us to more quickly and effectively enter into risk-based contracts with managed care health plans. Should our high acuity care joint venture partnerships not deliver sufficient perceived value to managed care health plans, those health plans may limit or forego opportunities to partner with us in expanded risk-based contracts. Additionally, assuming risk from managed care health plans requires that the appropriate clinical and operating protocols be in place to actuarially assess eligible members and determine historical baseline healthcare expenditures, enroll eligible members into the program, effectuate a clinically effective plan of care to treat those patients primarily in a home-based setting and coordinate care throughout various phases of the member’s treatment including proactive primary care and palliative care services. Should we be ineffective in identifying and enrolling members into the program or should the clinical treatment plans we implement for
enrolled members not result in reduced healthcare costs during the period in which those members are enrolled, we could incur significant additional costs under these contracts that exceed the revenues we receive. These negative outcomes could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Our business depends on our information systems. A cyber-attack, security breach or our inability to effectively integrate, manage and keep our information systems secure and operational could disrupt our operations.
As a healthcare provider, we face increased legal and regulatory compliance risk in the event of a cyber-attack. Healthcare providers and health insurance plans must comply with the HIPAA regulations regarding the privacy and security of protected health information. The HIPAA regulations impose significant requirements on providers with regard to how such protected health information may be used and disclosed. Further, the regulations include extensive and complex requirements for providers to establish reasonable and appropriate administrative, technical and physical safeguards to ensure the confidentiality, integrity and availability of protected health information. Even when providers establish reasonable and appropriate administrative, technical and physical safeguards, it is difficult to fully protect information systems from a breach or security incident. In the event the provider experiences a "breach" and protected health information is compromised, providers are obligated under HIPAA to notify individuals, the government, and in the event the breach involves 500 or more individuals, the media. HIPAA directs the Secretary of HHS to provide for periodic audits to ensure covered entities (and their business associates, as that term is defined under HIPAA) comply with the applicable HIPAA requirements. Entities within the U.S. that are found to be in violation of HIPAA may be subject to significant civil, criminal and administrative fines and penalties and/or additional reporting and oversight obligations if required to enter into a resolution agreement and corrective action plan with HHS to settle allegations of HIPAA non-compliance.
In addition to federal regulators, state attorneys general are also enforcing proactive security protocols and reporting requirements relating to information security breaches. All 50 states and the U.S. territories have breach notification laws; some of these laws also include proactive data security requirements. In addition to state laws regarding confidentiality of medical information, several states expanded state privacy laws regarding personal information which is more broadly defined than medical information.
Our networks, systems and devices store sensitive information, including intellectual property, proprietary business information and personal information of our patients, partners and employees. We have installed a number of protective technology systems and devices on our network, systems and point of care tablets in an attempt to prevent unauthorized access to information created, received, transmitted and maintained by us. However, healthcare companies are routinely targeted by threat actors, and no level of security can guarantee that cybersecurity incidents will not occur. In the event of a sophisticated ransomware attack, malware, viruses, phishing or social engineering, our technology may fail to adequately secure the protected health information and personal information we create, receive, transmit and maintain in our databases. In such circumstances, we may be held liable to our patients and regulators, which could result in fines, litigation or adverse publicity that could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. Even if we are not held liable, any resulting negative publicity could harm our business and distract the attention of management.
Our business depends on effective, secure and operational information systems that include systems provided by or hosted by external contractors, partners and other service providers. For example, our care centers depend upon our information systems and software for patient care, accounting, billing, collections, risk management, quality assurance, human resources, payroll and other information considered to be sensitive and/or confidential, including protected health information. These third-party vendors or "business associates", in the event the vendor creates, receives, transmits or maintains protected health information on our behalf, are required to comply with substantially the same HIPAA requirements as the healthcare provider. This is accomplished through the use of "Business Associate Agreements" with vendors. However, third- and fourth-party security incidents and supply-chain cyber attacks have been increasingly common, and there is no way for an organization to ensure that such incidents and attacks do not occur. The occurrence of any information system failure, breach or security incident, or a vendor's breach of the Business Associate Agreement could result in interruptions, delays, breaches of protected health information and personal information, loss or corruption of data and cessations or interruptions in the availability of these systems and the information they create, receive, transmit or maintain. Any of these events or circumstances, among others, could have an adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, and they could harm our business reputation.
In general, all information systems, including those we host or have hosted by third parties, are vulnerable to damage or interruption from fire, flood, power loss, telecommunications failure, human error, malicious acts, break-ins and other intentional or unintentional events. Our business is also at risk from and may be materially impacted and/or disrupted by information security incidents, such as ransomware, malware, viruses, phishing, social engineering and other security events. Such incidents can range from individual attempts to gain unauthorized access to information technology systems to more sophisticated security threats. These events can also result from internal compromises, such as human error or a rogue employee
or contractor, and can occur on our systems or on the systems of our partners and subcontractors. Additionally, our current information systems are subject to other non-environmental risks, including technological obsolescence, in some instances, which may create increased security and/or operational risk.
Problems with, or the failure of, our technology and systems or any system upgrades or programming changes associated with such technology and systems could have a material adverse effect on our operations, patient care, data capture and integrity, medical documentation, billing, collections, assessment of internal controls and management and reporting capabilities. If we experience a reduction in the performance, reliability or availability of our information systems, our operations and ability to produce timely and accurate reports could be materially adversely affected.
Our information systems and applications also require continual maintenance, upgrading and enhancement to meet our operational and security needs. Our acquisition activity requires transitions and integration of various information systems. We regularly upgrade and expand our information systems’ capabilities. If we experience difficulties with the transition and integration of information systems or are unable to implement, maintain or expand our systems properly, we could suffer from, among other things, operational disruptions, regulatory investigations or audits and increases in administrative expenses.
As cyber threats continue to evolve, we may be required to expend significant capital and other resources to protect against the threat of security breaches or to mitigate and alleviate problems caused by security incidents, including unauthorized access to protected health information and personal information stored in our information systems and the introduction of computer viruses or other malicious software programs to our systems. If we don't expend capital and other resources to continually enhance our security systems, our security measures may be inadequate to prevent security breaches, and our business operations and reputation could be materially adversely affected by federal and state fines and penalties, legal claims or proceedings, cancellation of contracts and loss of patients if security breaches are not prevented. The healthcare industry is currently a target for cyber criminals and is therefore experiencing increased scrutiny from federal and state regulators with respect to compliance with regulations designed to safeguard protected health information and mitigate cyber-attacks. There are significant costs associated with a breach, including investigation costs, remediation and mitigation costs, notification costs, attorney fees, litigation and the potential for reputational harm and lost revenues due to a loss in confidence in the provider. We cannot predict the costs to comply with these laws or the costs associated with a potential breach of protected health information, which could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, and our business reputation.
If we are subject to cyber-attacks or security breaches in the future, this could result in harm to patients; business interruptions and delays; the loss, misappropriation, corruption or unauthorized access of data; litigation and potential liability under privacy, security and consumer protection laws or other applicable laws; reputational damage and federal and state governmental inquiries. Any such problems or failures and the costs incurred in correcting any such problems or failures could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. Further, to the extent our external information technology contractors or other service providers have their own cyber-attack, security event or information technology failure, become insolvent or fail to support the software or systems we have licensed from them, our operations could be materially adversely affected. A failure to restore our information systems after the occurrence of any of these events could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. Because of the protected health information we store and transmit, loss of electronically stored information for any reason could expose us to risk of regulatory action and litigation and possible liability and loss.
We believe we have all the necessary licenses from third parties to use technology and software that we do not own. A third-party could, however, allege that we are infringing its rights, which may deter our ability to obtain licenses on commercially reasonable terms from the third-party, if at all, or cause the third-party to commence litigation against us. In addition, we may find it necessary to initiate litigation to protect our trade secrets, to enforce our intellectual property rights and to determine the scope and validity of any proprietary rights of others. Any such litigation, or the failure to obtain any necessary licenses or other rights, could materially and adversely affect our business.
Our insurance liability coverage may not be sufficient for our business needs.
As a result of operating in the home health industry, our business entails an inherent risk of claims, losses and potential lawsuits alleging incidents involving our employees that may occur in a patient’s home. We maintain professional liability insurance to provide coverage to us and our subsidiaries against these risks. However, we cannot assure you claims will not be made in the future in excess of the limits of our insurance, nor can we assure you that any such claims, if successful and in excess of such limits, will not have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. In some states, state law may prohibit or limit insurance coverage for the risk of punitive damages arising from professional liability and general liability claims and/or litigation. As a result, we may be liable for punitive damage awards in these states that either are not covered or are in excess of our insurance policy limits. Our insurance coverage also includes fire,
property damage, cyber security and general liability with varying limits. We cannot assure you that the insurance we maintain will satisfy claims made against us or that insurance coverage will continue to be available to us at commercially reasonable rates, in adequate amounts or on satisfactory terms. Any claims made against us, regardless of their merit or eventual outcome, could damage our reputation and business.
We may be subject to substantial malpractice or other similar claims.
As of February 16, 2024, we have approximately 19,000 employees (11,600 home health, 6,000 hospice, 200 high acuity care and 1,000 corporate employees). In addition, we employ direct care workers on a contractual basis to support our existing workforce. Due to the nature of our business, we, through our employees and caregivers who provide services on our behalf, may be the subject of medical malpractice claims. A court could find these individuals should be considered our agents, and, as a result, we could be held liable for their acts or omissions. We cannot predict the effect that any claims of this nature, regardless of their ultimate outcome, could have on our business or reputation or on our ability to attract and retain patients and employees. While we maintain malpractice liability coverage that we believe is appropriate given the nature and breadth of our operations, any claims against us in excess of insurance limits, or multiple claims requiring us to pay deductibles, could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
If we are unable to maintain our corporate reputation, our business may suffer.
Our success depends on our ability to maintain our corporate reputation, including our reputation for providing quality patient care and for compliance with Medicare requirements and the other laws to which we are subject. Adverse publicity surrounding any aspect of our business, including the death or disability of any of our patients due to our failure to provide proper care, or due to any failure on our part to comply with Medicare requirements, HIPAA requirements or other laws to which we are subject, could negatively affect our Company’s overall reputation and the willingness of referral sources to refer patients to us. Further, the poor performance, reputation or negative conduct of competitors may have spillover effects that adversely affect the industry and our brand.
A write off of a significant amount of intangible assets or long-lived assets could have a material adverse effect on our consolidated financial condition and results of operations.
A significant and sustained decline in our stock price and market capitalization, a significant decline in our expected future cash flows, a significant adverse change in the business climate or slower growth rates could result in the need to perform an impairment analysis under Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) Topic 350 “Intangibles – Goodwill and Other” in future periods in addition to our annual impairment test. If we were to conclude that a write down of goodwill is necessary, then we would record the appropriate charge, which could result in material charges that are adverse to our consolidated financial condition and results of operations. See Part II, Item 8, Note 6 – Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets, Net to our consolidated financial statements for additional information.
Because we have grown in part through acquisitions, goodwill and other acquired intangible assets represent a substantial portion of our assets. Goodwill was $1.2 billion as of December 31, 2023, and if we make additional acquisitions, it is likely that we will record additional goodwill and intangible assets in our consolidated financial statements. We also have long-lived assets consisting of property and equipment, operating lease right of use assets and other identifiable intangible assets of $233.5 million as of December 31, 2023, which we review on a periodic basis as well as when events or circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of an asset may not be recoverable. If a determination that a significant impairment in value of our unamortized intangible assets or long-lived assets occurs, such determination could require us to write off a substantial portion of our assets. A write off of these assets could have a material adverse effect on our consolidated financial condition and results of operations.
Our operations could be impacted by war, terrorism, natural or man-made disasters and climate change.
The Company's business may be adversely affected by instability, disruption or destruction in a geographic region in which it operates, regardless of cause, including war, terrorism, riot, civil insurrection or social unrest, climate change, natural or man-made disasters and extreme weather conditions, such as hurricanes, tornadoes, wildfires, earthquakes, floods and severe snow storms. Any such event in the markets in which we operate could not only impact the day-to-day operations of our care centers but could also disrupt our relationships with patients, employees and referral sources located in the affected areas and, in the case of our corporate office, our ability to provide administrative support services, including billing and collection services. In addition, any episode of care that is not completed due to such an event will generally result in lower revenue for the episode. Our corporate office and a number of our care centers are located in the southeastern United States and the Gulf Coast Region, increasing our exposure to hurricanes and flooding. Moreover, global climate change could increase the intensity of individual hurricanes or the number of hurricanes that occur each year. Even if our facilities are not directly damaged, we may experience considerable disruptions in our operations due to property damage or electrical outages experienced in storm-affected areas by
our care givers, payors, vendors and others. Additionally, long-term adverse weather conditions, whether caused by global climate change or otherwise, could cause an outmigration of people from the communities where our care centers are located. If any of the circumstances described above occur, there could be a harmful effect on our business and our results of operations could be adversely affected.
Further, the current Russia-Ukraine conflict has created extreme volatility in the global financial markets and is expected to have further global economic consequences, including disruptions of the global supply chain and energy markets. Any such volatility or disruptions or similar disruptions caused by the Israel-Hamas War may have adverse consequences on us or the third parties on whom we rely. If the equity and credit markets deteriorate, including as a result of political unrest or war, it may make any necessary debt or equity financing more difficult to obtain in a timely manner or on favorable terms, more costly or more dilutive. Our business, financial condition and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected by any negative impact on the global economy resulting from the conflict in Ukraine, the Middle East or any other geopolitical tensions.
Inflation in the economy could negatively impact our business and results of operations.
Recently, inflation has increased throughout the United States economy. Our operations have been materially impacted by the recent inflationary environment as we have experienced higher labor costs and increases in supply costs, fuel costs and mileage reimbursements. Additionally, cost increases may outpace our expectations, causing us to use our cash and other liquid assets faster than forecasted. If we are unable to successfully manage the effects of inflation, our business, operating results, cash flows and financial condition may be adversely affected.
Risks Related to our Growth Strategies
Our growth strategy depends on our ability to acquire additional care centers and integrate and operate these care centers effectively, make investments and enter into joint ventures and other strategic relationships. If our growth strategy is unsuccessful or we are not able to successfully integrate newly acquired care centers into our existing operations, our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows could be materially adversely affected.
We may not be able to fully integrate the operations of our acquired businesses with our current business structure in an efficient and cost-effective manner. Acquisitions, investments, joint ventures or strategic relationships involve significant risks and uncertainties, including:
•Difficulties in recouping partial episode payments and other types of misdirected payments for services from the previous owners in an acquisition;
•Difficulties integrating acquired personnel and business practices into our business;
•The potential loss of key employees, referral sources or patients of acquired care centers;
•The delay in payments associated with change in ownership, control and the internal processes of the Medicare Administrative Contractors;
•The assumption of liabilities and exposure to unforeseen liabilities of acquired care centers;
•The incurrence or assumption of significant debt, which could also cause a deterioration of our credit ratings, result in increased borrowing costs and interest expense and diminish our future access to the capital markets;
•Diverging interests from those of our joint venture partners or other strategic partners - we may not be able to direct the management and operations of the joint venture or other strategic relationship in the manner we believe is most appropriate, exposing us to additional risk;
•Variability in operating results which could cause our financial results to differ from our own expectations or the investment community’s expectations in any given period, or over the long-term; and
•Pre-closing and post-closing earnings charges which could adversely impact operating results in any given period.
As a result of our acquisitions and investments, we have recorded significant goodwill and other assets on our balance sheet. If we are not able to realize the value of these assets, or if the fair value of our investments declines, we may be required to record impairment charges which could have a material adverse effect on our consolidated financial condition and results of operations.
Further, the financial benefits we expect to realize from many of our acquisitions are largely dependent upon our ability to improve clinical performance, overcome regulatory deficiencies, improve the reputation of the acquired business in the community and control costs. As we expand our markets, our growth could strain our resources, including our management,
information and accounting systems, regulatory compliance, logistics and other internal controls. The failure to accomplish any of these objectives, to effectively integrate any of these businesses or to maintain a sufficient level of resources to match our growth could have material adverse effects on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
The indemnification provisions of acquisition agreements by which we have acquired companies may not fully protect us, and as a result, we may face unexpected liabilities.
Certain of the acquisition agreements by which we have acquired companies require the former owners to indemnify us against certain liabilitiestook related to the operation of the acquired company before we acquired it. In most of these agreements, however, the liability of the former owners is limited, and certain former owners may be unable to meet their indemnification responsibilities. We cannot assure you that these indemnification provisions will protect us fully or at all, and as a result, we may face unexpected liabilities that could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
State efforts to regulate the establishment or expansion of health care providers could impair our ability to expand our operations.
Some states require health care providers (including skilled nursing facilities, hospice care centers, home health care centers and assisted living facilities) to obtain prior approval, known as a CON, POA or FNR, in order to commence operations (see Part I, Item 1, “Our Regulatory Environment” for additional information on CONs, POAs and FNRs). If we are not able to obtain such approvals, our ability to expand our operations could be impaired, which could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Federal regulation may impair our ability to consummate acquisitions or open new care centers.
Changes in federal laws or regulations may materially adversely impact our ability to acquire care centers or open new start-up care centers. For example, the Social Security Act provides the Secretary with the authority to impose temporary moratoria on the enrollment of new Medicare providers, if deemed necessary to combat fraud, waste or abuse under government programs. While there are no active Medicare moratoria, there can be no assurance that CMS will not adopt a moratorium on new providers in the future. Additionally, in 2010, CMS implemented and amended a regulation known as the “36 Month Rule” that is applicable to home health and hospice care center acquisitions. Subject to certain exceptions, the 36 Month Rule prohibits buyers of certain home health and hospice care centers, those that either enrolled in Medicare or underwent a change in majority ownership fewer than 36 months prior to the acquisition, from assuming the Medicare billing privileges of the acquired care center. The 36 Month Rule may restrict bona fide transactions and potentially block new investments in home health and hospice agencies. These changes in federal laws and regulations, and similar future changes, may further increase competition for acquisition targets and could have a material detrimental impact on our acquisition strategy. Further, some states have enacted laws requiring merging parties in healthcare-related transactions to notify state agencies and observe waiting periods (e.g., from 30 days to, in some cases, months) prior to closing.
Divestitures or other dispositions could negatively impact our business, and contingent liabilities from businesses that we have sold could adversely affect our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
We continually assess the strategic fitcompensation of our existing businesses and may divest, spin-off or otherwise dispose of businesses that are deemed not to fit with our strategic plan or are not achieving the desired return on investment. These transactions pose risks and challenges that could negatively impact our business and results of operations. For example, when we decide to sell or otherwise dispose of a business or assets, we may be unable to do so on satisfactory terms within our anticipated timeframe or at all, and even after reaching a definitive agreement to sell or dispose a business, the sale is typically subject to satisfaction of pre-closing conditions which may not become satisfied. In addition, divestitures or other dispositions may dilute our earnings per share, have other adverse tax, financial and accounting impacts and distract management, and disputes may arise with buyers. In addition, we may retain responsibility for and/or agree to indemnify buyers against some known and unknown contingent liabilities related to certain businesses or assets we sell or dispose. Any of these conditions or liabilities may negatively impact our results of operations and cash flows.
Risks Related to Laws and Government Regulations
We are subject to extensive government regulation. Any changes to the laws and regulations governing our business, or to the interpretation and enforcement of those laws or regulations, could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Our industry is subject to extensive federal and state laws and regulations. See Part I, Item 1, “Our Regulatory Environment” for additional information on such laws and regulations. Federal and state laws and regulations impact how we conduct our
business, the services we offer and our interactions with patients, our employees and the public and impose certain requirements on us related to:
•licensure and certification;
•adequacy and quality of health care services;
•qualifications of health care and support personnel;
•quality and safety of medical equipment;
•confidentiality, maintenance and security associated with medical records and claims processing;
•relationships with physicians and other referral sources;
•operating policies and procedures;
•emergency preparedness risk assessments and policies and procedures;
•policies and procedures regarding employee relations;
•addition of facilities and services;
•billing for services;
•utilization of services;
•documentation required for billing and patient care; and
•reporting and maintaining records regarding adverse events.
These laws and regulations, and their interpretations, are subject to change. Changes in existing laws and regulations, or their interpretations, or the enactment of new laws or regulations could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows by:
•increasing our administrative and other costs;
•increasing or decreasing mandated services;
•causing us to abandon business opportunities we might have otherwise pursued;
•decreasing utilization of services;
•forcing us to restructure our relationships with referral sources and providers; or
•requiring us to implement additional or different programs and systems.
Additionally, we are subject to various routine and non-routine reviews, audits and investigations by the Medicare and Medicaid programs and other federal and state governmental agencies, which have various rights and remedies against us if they establish that we have overcharged the programs or failed to comply with program requirements. We are also subject to potential lawsuits“Named Executive Officers,” as defined under the federal False Claims Act and other federal and state whistleblower statutes designed to combat fraud and abuse in our industry. Violation of the laws governing our operations or changes in interpretations of those laws could result in the imposition of fines, civil or criminal penalties, the termination of our rights to participate in federal and state-sponsored programs and/or the suspension or revocation of our licenses. If we become subject to material fines or if other sanctions or other corrective actions are imposed on us, our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows could be materially adversely affected.
We face periodic and routine reviews, audits and investigations under our contracts with federal and state government agencies and private payors, and these audits could have adverse findings that may negatively impact our business.
As a result of our participation in the Medicare and Medicaid programs, we are subject to various governmental reviews, audits and investigations to verify our compliance with these programs and applicable laws and regulations. We also are subject to audits under various federal and state government programs in which third-party firms engaged by CMS, including Recovery Audit Contractors (“RACs”), Zone Program Integrity Contractors (“ZPICs”), Uniform Program Integrity Contractors ("UPICs"), Program Safeguard Contractors (“PSCs”), Medicaid Integrity Contractors (“MICs”), Supplemental Medical Review Contractors (“SMRCs”) and the Office of the Inspector General ("OIG"), conduct extensive reviews of claims data and medical and other records to identify potential improper payments under the Medicare program. Additionally, private pay sources reserve the right to conduct audits. If billing errors are identified in the sample of reviewed claims, the billing error can be
extrapolated to all claims filed which could result in a larger overpayment than originally identified in the sample of reviewed claims. Our costs to respond to and defend reviews, audits and investigations may be significant and could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. Moreover, an adverse review, audit or investigation could result in:
•required refunding or retroactive adjustment of amounts we have been paid pursuant to the federal or state programs or from private payors;
•state or federal agencies imposing fines, penalties and other sanctions on us;
•loss of our right to participate in the Medicare program, state programs or one or more private payor networks; or
•damage to our business and reputation in various markets.
These results could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
If a care center fails to comply with the conditions of participation in the Medicare program, that care center could be subjected to sanctions or terminated from the Medicare program.
Each of our care centers must comply with required conditions of participation in the Medicare program. If we fail to meet the conditions of participation at a care center, we may receive a notice of deficiency from the applicable state surveyor. If that care center then fails to institute an acceptable plan of correction to remediate the deficiency within the correction period provided by the state surveyor, that care center could be terminated from the Medicare program or subjected to alternative sanctions. CMS may impose temporary management, direct a plan of correction, direct training or impose payment suspensions and civil monetary penalties, in each case, upon providers who fail to comply with the conditions of participation. Termination of one or more of our care centers from the Medicare program for failure to satisfy the program’s conditions of participation or the imposition of alternative sanctions could disrupt operations, require significant attention by management or have a material adverse effect on our business and reputation and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
We are subject to federal and state laws that govern our financial relationships with physicians and other health care providers, including potential or current referral sources.
As stated in Part I, Item 1, "Our Regulatory Environment" of this document pertaining to Federal and State Anti-Fraud and Abuse Laws and Regulations, we are required to comply with various federal anti-fraud and abuse laws, including the federal Anti-Kickback Statute, the Stark or Physician Self-Referral Law, the False Claims Act and Civil Monetary Penalties Law, as well as state laws and regulations.
Although we believe we have structured our relationships with physicians and other actual or potential referral sources to comply with these laws where applicable, the laws are complex, and the Stark Law contains a number of strict liability provisions under which no intent to violate the law is required for a violation to be found. It is possible that courts or regulatory agencies may interpret state and federal anti-kickback laws and/or the Stark Law and similar state laws regulating relationships between health care providers and physicians in ways that will adversely implicate our practices or that isolated instances of noncompliance may occur. Violations of federal or state anti-kickback laws or the Stark Law could lead to criminal or civil fines or other sanctions, including repayment of federal health care program payments related to these arrangements, denials of government program reimbursement or even exclusion from participation in governmental health care programs, which could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. It is possible that a claim that results from a kickback or is made in violation of the Stark Law also may render it false or fraudulent, creating further potential liability under the federal False Claims Act, discussed above.
The No Surprises Act and similar price transparency initiatives could impact our relationships with patients and insurers.
SEC’s executive compensation disclosure rules.Effective January 1, 2022, the No Surprises Act, enacted as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, creates price transparency requirements, including (i) requiring providers to send to patients or their health plan a good faith estimate of the expected charges and diagnostic codes prior to furnishing scheduled items or services and (ii) prohibiting providers from charging patients an amount beyond the in-network cost sharing amount for services rendered by out-of network providers, subject to limited exceptions. Price transparency initiatives such as the No Surprises Act may impact our ability to obtain or maintain favorable contract terms and may impact our competitive position and our relationships with patients and insurers.
Risks Related to Liquidity
Delays in payment may cause liquidity problems.
Our business is characterized by delays from the time we provide services to the time we receive payment for these services. Timing delays in billings and collections may cause working capital shortages. Working capital management, including prompt and diligent billing and collection, is an important factor in achieving our financial results and maintaining liquidity. It is possible that delays in obtaining documentation support such as physician orders, system problems, Medicare or other payor issues or industry trends may extend our collection period, which may materially adversely affect our working capital, and our working capital management procedures may not successfully mitigate this risk.
On May 29, 2018, CMS issued a notice indicating its intention to re-launch a home health agency pre-claim review demonstration project. Now called the Review Choice Demonstration for Home Health Services ("RCD") and fully implemented in six states (Florida, Illinois, North Carolina, Ohio, Texas and Oklahoma), RCD gives home health agencies three initial options: pre-claim review of all claims, post-payment review of all claims or minimal post-payment review with a 25% payment reduction for all home health services. Reduced review options are available for home health agencies that demonstrate compliance.
CMS has also implemented the Targeted Probe and Educate ("TPE") program for home health and hospice providers to help reduce provider claim denials and educate providers on appropriate billing practices. Under the TPE program, Medicare Administrative Contractors ("MACs") use data analysis to identify providers who have high claim error rates, unusual billing practices or provide services that have high national error rates. If a provider is selected for a TPE review by a MAC, the initial volume of claims reviewed is limited to 20 to 40 claims and can include up to three rounds of claims review, if necessary, with corresponding provider education and a subsequent period to allow for improvement. If results do not improve sufficiently after three rounds, the MAC may refer the provider to CMS for further action which may include 100% prepay review, extrapolation, referral to a Recovery Auditor and/or referral for revocation from the Medicare program. Providers will not be under TPE review and RCD at the same time. Providers currently on TPE review will be removed prior to CMS implementing RCD in that particular state.
Compliance with the RCD and TPE processes has resulted in increased administrative costs and delays in reimbursement for services in the states subject to RCD and TPE review. These delays could materially adversely affect our working capital.
Additionally, our hospice operations may experience payment delays when attempting to collect funds from state Medicaid programs in certain instances. Delays in receiving payments from these programs may also materially adversely affect our working capital.
Changes in units of payment for home health agencies could reduce our Medicare home health reimbursement levels.
Effective January 1, 2020, CMS implemented a revised case-mix adjustment methodology, the Patient-Driven Groupings Model ("PDGM"). Although this payment change was to be implemented in an overall budget neutral manner, the ultimate impact varied by provider based on factors including patient mix and admission source. Additionally, CMS made assumptions about behavior changes which resulted in a 4.36% reduction to reimbursement. Accordingly, the adoption of PDGM had a negative impact on our Medicare revenue per episode in 2020. Additionally, in the Calendar Year 2023 and 2024 Home Health Final Rules, CMS finalized permanent reductions in reimbursement totaling -3.5% and -2.6%, respectively, based on the difference between assumed and actual behavioral changes resulting from the implementation of PDGM. The permanent adjustments were only half of the behavioral adjustments initially proposed. CMS had concerns about implementing the full adjustments given the impact such a large decrease would have on providers. CMS will consider the remaining adjustments in future rulemaking. In addition to the permanent adjustments, CMS also has the discretion to make temporary adjustments through Calendar Year 2026. Payment updates could continue to negatively impact our rates of reimbursement in future years and have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. See Part I, Item 1, “Our Regulatory Environment – Home Health Payment Reform” for additional information.
The volatility and disruption of the capital and credit markets and adverse changes in the United States and global economies could impact our ability to access both available and affordable financing, and without such financing, we may be unable to achieve our objectives for strategic acquisitions and internal growth.
While we intend to finance strategic acquisitions and internal growth with cash flows from operations and borrowings under our revolving credit facility, we may require sources of capital in addition to those presently available to us. Uncertainty in the capital and credit markets may impact our ability to access capital on terms acceptable to us (i.e. at attractive/affordable rates) or at all, and this may result in our inability to achieve present objectives for strategic acquisitions and internal growth. Further, in the event we need additional funds and are unable to raise the necessary funds on acceptable terms, our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows could be materially adversely affected.
Our indebtedness could impact our financial condition and impair our ability to fulfill other obligations.
As of December 31, 2023, we had total outstanding indebtedness, excluding finance leases, of approximately $371.9 million. Our level of indebtedness could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial position, results of operations and cash flows and could impair our ability to fulfill other obligations in several ways, including:
•it could require us to dedicate a portion of our cash flow from operations to payments on our indebtedness, which could reduce the availability of cash flow to fund acquisitions, start-ups, working capital, capital expenditures and other general corporate purposes;
•it could limit our ability to borrow money or sell stock for working capital, capital expenditures, debt service requirements and other purposes;
•it could limit our flexibility in planning for, and reacting to, changes in our industry or business;
•it could make us more vulnerable to unfavorable economic or business conditions; and
•it could limit our ability to make acquisitions or take advantage of other business opportunities.
In the event we incur additional indebtedness, the risks described above could increase.
The agreements governing our indebtedness contain various covenants that limit our discretion in the operation of our business, and our failure to satisfy requirements in these agreements could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
The agreements governing our indebtedness (the “Debt Agreements”) contain certain obligations, including restrictive covenants that require us to comply with or maintain certain financial covenants and ratios and restrict our ability to:
•incur additional debt;
•redeem or repurchase stock, pay dividends or make other distributions;
•make certain investments;
•create liens;
•enter into transactions with affiliates;
•make acquisitions;
•enter into joint ventures;
•merge or consolidate;
•invest in foreign subsidiaries;
•amend acquisition documents;
•enter into certain swap agreements;
•make certain restricted payments;
•transfer, sell or leaseback assets; and
•make fundamental changes in our corporate existence and principal business.
Our Debt Agreements also limit our ability to reinvest the net cash proceeds from asset sales or subordinated debt issuances in certain circumstances. For example, in the event we or any of our subsidiaries receive more than $5 million in net cash proceeds from an asset sale, disposition or involuntary disposition, our Debt Agreements require us to prepay our term loan facility and revolving credit facility with all of such net cash proceeds, unless we elect to reinvest the net cash proceeds in fixed or capital assets related to our business.
In addition, events beyond our control could affect our ability to comply with the Debt Agreements. Any failure by us to comply with or maintain all applicable financial covenants and ratios and to comply with all other applicable covenants could result in an event of default with respect to the Debt Agreements. If we are unable to obtain a waiver from our lenders in the event of any non-compliance, our lenders could accelerate the maturity of any outstanding indebtedness and terminate the commitments to make further extensions of credit (including our ability to borrow under our revolving credit facility). Any failure to comply with these covenants could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Risks Related to Ownership of Our Common Stock
The price of our common stock has been and may continue to be volatile, which could lead to securities litigation brought against us or cause investors to lose the value of their investment.
The price at which our common stock trades has experienced significant volatility in prior years and may continue to be volatile. Various factors have impacted, and may continue to impact, the price of our common stock, including among others:
•variances in our quarterly financial results compared to research analyst expectations;
•changes in financial estimates and recommendations by securities analysts;
•changes in our estimates, guidance or business plans;
•changes in management;
•changes or proposed changes in health care laws or regulations or enforcement of these laws and regulations, or announcements relating to these matters;
•changes in the Medicare, Medicaid and private insurance payment rates for home health and hospice;
•the operating and stock price performance of other comparable companies;
•announcements by us or our competitors of significant contracts, acquisitions, strategic partnerships, joint ventures or capital commitments;
•general economic and stock market conditions; or
•other factors described in this "Risk Factors" section and elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
Additionally, if the proposed merger with UnitedHealth Group is not completed within the expected timeframe, or at all, we may experience negative reactions from the financial markets, including negative impacts on our stock price, and it is uncertain when, if ever, the price of our shares would return to the prices at which our shares currently trade.
The stock market in general, and the NASDAQ Global Select Market (“NASDAQ”) in particular, has experienced price and volume fluctuations that we believe have often been unrelated or disproportionate to the operating performance of health care provider companies. These broad market and industry factors may materially reduce the market price of our common stock, regardless of our operating performance. As a result, investors may not be able to sell their common stock at or above the purchase price. In addition, securities class-action cases have often been brought against companies following periods of volatility in the market price of their securities. Such litigation, if instituted against us, could result in substantial costs and a diversion of management's attention and resources.
The activities of short sellers could reduce the price or prevent increases in the price of our common stock. “Short sale” is defined as the sale of stock by an investor that the investor does not own. Typically, investors who sell short believe the price of the stock will fall, and anticipate selling shares at a higher price than the purchase price at which they will buy the stock. As of December 31, 2023, investors held a short position of approximately 2.9 million shares of our common stock which represented 9% of our outstanding common stock. The anticipated downward pressure on our stock price due to actual or anticipated sales of our stock by some institutions or individuals who engage in short sales of our common stock could cause our stock price to decline.
Our Board of Directors may use anti-takeover provisions or issue stock to discourage a change of control.
We are party to the Merger Agreement with UnitedHealth Group, which will result in a change in control of Amedisys, if completed. As such, the below anti-takeover provisions are inapplicable to the proposed Merger.
Our certificate of incorporation currently authorizes us to issue up to 60,000,000 shares of common stock and 5,000,000 shares of undesignated preferred stock. Our Board of Directors may cause us to issue additional stock to discourage an attempt to obtain control of our company. For example, shares of stock could be sold to purchasers who might support our Board of Directors in a control contest or to dilute the voting or other rights of a person seeking to obtain control. In addition, our Board of Directors could cause us to issue preferred stock entitling holders to vote separately on any proposed transaction, convert preferred stock into common stock, demand redemption at a specified price in connection with a change in control or exercise other rights designed to impede a takeover.
The issuance of additional shares may, among other things, dilute the earnings and equity per share of our common stock and the voting rights of common stockholders.
We have implemented other anti-takeover provisions or provisions that could have an anti-takeover effect, including advance notice requirements for director nominations and stockholder proposals, no cumulative voting for directors, requirements that director vacancies are filled by remaining directors (including vacancies resulting from removal) and that the number of directors is fixed by the Board of Directors as well as the ability for the Board of Directors to increase or decrease the size of the Board of Directors without stockholder approval (within the range set forth in our Certificate of Incorporation and Bylaws). These provisions, and others that our Board of Directors may adopt hereafter, may discourage offers to acquire us and may permit our Board of Directors to choose not to entertain offers to purchase us, even if such offers include a substantial premium to the market price of our stock. Therefore, our stockholders may be deprived of opportunities to profit from a change of control.
Our Bylaws designate the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware or, if the Court of Chancery does not have jurisdiction, the federal court for the District of Delaware, as the sole and exclusive forum for certain types of actions and proceedings that may be initiated by our stockholders, which could discourage lawsuits against us and our directors, officers, employees and stockholders.
Our Bylaws provide that unless we otherwise consent to the selection of an alternative forum, the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware or, if the Court of Chancery does not have jurisdiction, the federal court for the District of Delaware, will be the sole and exclusive forum for any derivative action or proceeding brought on behalf of us, any action asserting a claim of breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any of our directors, officers, employees or agents to us or our stockholders, any action asserting a claim arising pursuant to any provision of the Delaware General Corporation Law or our Certificate of Incorporation or Bylaws or any action asserting a claim governed by the internal affairs doctrine. This provision would not apply to claims brought to enforce a duty or liability created by the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”) or any other claim for which the federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction.
In addition, our Bylaws provide that the federal district courts of the United States will be the exclusive forum for resolving any complaint asserting a cause of action arising under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), unless we consent in writing to the selection of an alternative forum.
These exclusive forum provisions may limit the ability of our stockholders to bring a claim in a judicial forum that such stockholders find favorable for disputes with us or our directors or officers, which may discourage such lawsuits against us and our directors, officers, employees and agents.
ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS
None.
ITEM 1C. CYBERSECURITY
Amedisys recognizes the importance of assessing, identifying and managing material risks associated with cybersecurity threats, as such term is defined in Item 106(a) of Regulation S-K. These risks include, among other things, operational disruption, intellectual property theft, fraud, extortion, harm to employees or patients, violation of privacy or security laws and other litigation and legal risk. Amedisys has implemented various cybersecurity processes, technologies and controls to enhance our efforts to assess, identify and manage such material risks.
Amedisys deploys a range of tools and services, including regular network and endpoint monitoring, vulnerability assessments and penetration testing, to inform our leadership team of cybersecurity-based risks. In addition, we schedule tabletop exercises with management and other employees to test our cyber incident response plans. Amedisys has also received HITRUST certification for our internally developed applications which allows us to baseline our program to industry standards and best practices.
Our cybersecurity program includes controls designed to identify, protect against, detect, respond to and recover from cybersecurity incidents (as such term is defined in Item 106(a) of Regulation S-K) and to provide for the availability of critical data and systems to maintain regulatory compliance. These controls include the following activities:
•Closely monitoring emerging data protection laws and implementing needed changes to our processes in order to comply.
•Conducting annual cybersecurity management and incident training for all employees of the organization.
•Requiring employees and third parties who provide services on our behalf to treat customer information and data with care.
•Leveraging the HITRUST incident handling framework to help us identify, protect, detect, respond and recover when there is an actual or potential cybersecurity incident.
•Carrying information security risk insurance that provides protection against the potential losses arising from a cybersecurity incident.
Additionally, Amedisys performs periodic internal and third-party assessments to test our cybersecurity controls and regularly evaluates our policies and procedures surrounding our handling and control of personal data and the systems we have in place to help protect us from cybersecurity threats or personal data breaches.
Amedisys has established a cybersecurity risk management process that includes internal reporting of significant cybersecurity risk to our Enterprise Risk Management Committee (“ERMC”) on a quarterly basis. In addition, our incident response plan includes processes to triage, assess severity, escalate, contain, investigate and remediate the incident, as well as to comply with potentially applicable legal obligations and mitigate brand and reputational damage. These processes are assessed annually during our penetration testing.
Our risk management processes also address cybersecurity threat risks associated with our use of third-party service providers, including those in our supply chain or those who have access to our customer and employee data or our systems. In addition, cybersecurity considerations affect the selection and oversight of our third-party service providers. Amedisys performs diligence on third parties that have access to our systems, data or facilities that house such systems or data and monitors cybersecurity threat risks identified through such diligence.
We face a number of cybersecurity risks in connection with our business (see Part I, Item 1A. “Risk Factors – Risks Related to our Operations – Our business depends on our information systems. A cyber-attack, security breach or our inability to effectively integrate, manage and keep our information systems secure and operational could disrupt our operations.”). Although such risks have not materially impacted our business strategy, results of operations or financial condition to date, we have experienced threats to and breaches of our data and systems, including malware and computer virus attacks.
The Audit Committee of the Board of Directors oversees our cybersecurity risk exposures and the steps taken by management to monitor and mitigate cybersecurity risks. On an annual basis, management provides the Audit Committee with an overview of our cybersecurity threat risk management and strategy covering topics such as data security posture, results from third-party assessments, progress towards pre-determined risk mitigation related goals, our incident response plan and cybersecurity threat risks or incidents and developments, as well as the steps management has taken to respond to such risks. The Audit Committee also receives materials, including a cybersecurity briefing, indicating current and emerging cybersecurity threat risks and describing the Company’s ability to mitigate those risks.
The members of management who are responsible for assessing and managing cyber risk are the Chief Information Security Officer and the Chief Information Officer of the Company who, combined, have over 30 years of experience in managing cybersecurity. The ERMC has ultimate responsibility for the risk management of cyber risk and is informed about and monitors the prevention, detection, mitigation and remediation of cybersecurity incidents in addition to the cyber incident response and reporting processes.
ITEM 2. PROPERTIES
Our executive office is located in Nashville, Tennessee in a leased property consisting of 8,784 square feet; our corporate headquarters is located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana in a leased property consisting of 95,657 square feet. We believe we have adequate space to accommodate our corporate staff located in these locations for the foreseeable future.
In addition to our executive office and corporate headquarters, we also lease facilities for our home health and hospice care centers and our high acuity care joint ventures. Generally, our leases have an initial term of five years, but range from one to ten years. Most of our leases also contain early termination options and renewal options. The following table shows the location of our 346 Medicare-certified home health care centers, 165 Medicare-certified hospice care centers and 11 high acuity care markets at December 31, 2023:
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| State | | Home Health | | Hospice | | High Acuity Care | | State | | Home Health | | Hospice | | High Acuity Care |
| Alabama | | 29 | | | 10 | | | — | | | Nebraska | | 1 | | | 7 | | | — | |
| Arizona | | 3 | | | 1 | | | 1 | | | New Hampshire | | 3 | | | 3 | | | — | |
| Arkansas | | 7 | | | — | | | 1 | | | New Jersey | | 2 | | | 7 | | | — | |
| California | | 4 | | | 1 | | | — | | | New York | | 6 | | | — | | | 1 | |
| Connecticut | | 1 | | | 1 | | | — | | | North Carolina | | 13 | | | 7 | | | — | |
| Delaware | | 2 | | | 2 | | | — | | | Ohio | | 4 | | | 5 | | | — | |
| Florida | | 15 | | | 7 | | | — | | | Oklahoma | | 7 | | | 1 | | | — | |
| Georgia | | 56 | | | 9 | | | — | | | Oregon | | 3 | | | 1 | | | — | |
| Illinois | | 2 | | | — | | | — | | | Pennsylvania | | 9 | | | 20 | | | 2 | |
| Indiana | | 5 | | | 5 | | | — | | | Rhode Island | | 1 | | | 2 | | | — | |
| Iowa | | — | | | 1 | | | — | | | South Carolina | | 26 | | | 8 | | | 1 | |
| Kansas | | 1 | | | 1 | | | — | | | South Dakota | | — | | | 1 | | | |
| Kentucky | | 17 | | | — | | | — | | | Tennessee | | 45 | | | 15 | | | — | |
| Louisiana | | 8 | | | 5 | | | — | | | Texas | | 16 | | | 12 | | | 1 | |
| Maine | | 3 | | | 4 | | | — | | | Virginia | | 14 | | | 5 | | | — | |
| Maryland | | 9 | | | 3 | | | — | | | Washington | | 2 | | | — | | | 1 | |
| Massachusetts | | 6 | | | 10 | | | — | | | West Virginia | | 11 | | | 6 | | | — | |
| Michigan | | — | | | — | | | 1 | | | Wisconsin | | — | | | 3 | | | 2 | |
| Mississippi | | 8 | | | — | | | — | | | Washington, D.C. | | 1 | | | — | | | — | |
| Missouri | | 6 | | | 2 | | | — | | | Total | | 346 | | | 165 | | | 11 | |
ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS
See Part II, Item 8, Note 12 – Commitments and Contingencies for information concerning our legal proceedings.
ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES
Not applicable.
PART II
ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES
Market Information and Holders
Our common stock trades on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the trading symbol “AMED.” As of February 16, 2024, there were approximately 458 holders of record of our common stock. This number of holders of record does not represent the actual number of beneficial owners of our common stock because shares are frequently held in “street name” by securities dealers and others for the benefit of individual owners who have the right to vote their shares.
Dividend Policy
We have not declared or paid any cash dividends on our common stock or any other of our securities and do not expect to pay cash dividends for the foreseeable future. We currently intend to retain our future earnings, if any, to fund the development and growth of our business. Future decisions concerning the payment of dividends will depend upon our results of operations, financial condition, capital expenditure plans and debt service requirements, as well as such other factors that our Board of Directors, in its sole discretion, may consider relevant. In addition, our outstanding indebtedness restricts, and we anticipate any additional future indebtedness may restrict, our ability to pay cash dividends; provided, however, that we may pay dividends (i) payable solely in our equity securities or (ii) cash dividends if (1) no default or event of default under the Third Amended Credit Agreement shall have occurred and be continuing at the time of such dividend or would result therefrom, and (2) we demonstrate that, upon giving pro forma effect to such dividend, our consolidated leverage ratio (as defined in the Third Amended Credit Agreement) is less than 2.75 to 1.0.
Purchases of Equity Securities
The following table provides information with respect to purchases made by us of shares of our common stock during each of the months during the three-month period ended December 31, 2023. The amounts below only relate to employee stock activity as the Merger Agreement limits the Company's ability to repurchase shares of common stock prior to the completion of the Merger, subject to certain exceptions.
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Period | | (a)
Total Number
of Shares (or Units)
Purchased | | | (b)
Average Price
Paid per Share (or Unit) | | (c)
Total Number of
Shares (or Units)
Purchased as Part of
Publicly Announced
Plans or Programs | | (d) Maximum Number (or
Approximate Dollar
Value) of Shares (or
Units) That May Yet Be
Purchased Under the
Plans or Programs | |
| October 1, 2023 to October 31, 2023 | 509 | | | | $ | 92.74 | | | — | | | $ | 100,000,000 | | |
| November 1, 2023 to November 30, 2023 | — | | | | — | | | — | | | 100,000,000 | | |
| December 1, 2023 to December 31, 2023 | 31,084 | | | | 95.41 | | | — | | | 100,000,000 | | |
| | 31,593 | | (1) | | $ | 95.37 | | | — | | | $ | 100,000,000 | | (2) | |
(1)Includes shares of common stock surrendered to us by certain employees to satisfy tax withholding and/or strike price obligations in connection with the vesting of non-vested stock and the exercise of stock options previously awarded to such employees under our 2018 Omnibus Incentive Compensation Plan.
(2)Represents amounts remaining as of December 31, 2023 under the $100 million 2023 Repurchase Program, which was authorized by our Board of Directors on February 2, 2023 and expired on December 31, 2023.
Stock Performance Graph
The Performance Graph below compares the cumulative total stockholder return on our common stock, $0.001 par value per share, for the five-year period ended December 31, 2023 with the cumulative total return on the NASDAQ composite index and an industry peer group over the same period (assuming the investment of $100 in our common stock, the NASDAQ composite index and the industry peer group on December 31, 2018 and the reinvestment of dividends). The peer group we selected is comprised of: Addus Homecare Corporation ("ADUS"), Chemed Corporation ("CHE"), Encompass Health Corporation ("EHC") and National Healthcare Corporation (“NHC”). The cumulative total stockholder return on the following graph is historical and is not necessarily indicative of future stock price performance. No cash dividends have been paid on our common stock.
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 12/31/2018 | | 12/31/2019 | | 12/31/2020 | | 12/31/2021 | | 12/31/2022 | | 12/31/2023 |
| Amedisys, Inc. | $ | 100.00 | | | $ | 142.53 | | | $ | 250.47 | | | $ | 138.23 | | | $ | 71.33 | | | $ | 81.17 | |
| NASDAQ Composite | $ | 100.00 | | | $ | 136.69 | | | $ | 198.10 | | | $ | 242.03 | | | $ | 163.28 | | | $ | 236.17 | |
| Peer Group | $ | 100.00 | | | $ | 132.91 | | | $ | 156.73 | | | $ | 142.46 | | | $ | 148.05 | | | $ | 169.52 | |
This stock performance information is “furnished” and shall not be deemed to be “soliciting material” or subject to Regulation 14A under the Exchange Act, shall not be deemed “filed” for purposes of Section 18 of the Exchange Act or otherwise subject to the liabilities of that section, and shall not be deemed incorporated by reference in any filing under the Securities Act or the Exchange Act, whether made before or after the date of this report and irrespective of any general incorporation by reference language in any such filing, except to the extent we specifically incorporate the information by reference.
ITEM 6. [RESERVED]
ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
The following discussion and analysis provides information we believe is relevant to an assessment and understanding of our results of operations and financial condition for 2023, 2022 and 2021. This discussion should be read in conjunction with our audited financial statements included in Item 8, "Financial Statements and Supplementary Data” and Part I, Item 1, “Business” of this Annual Report on Form 10-K. The following analysis contains forward-looking statements about our future revenues, operating results and expectations. See “Special Caution Concerning Forward-Looking Statements” for a discussion of the risks, assumptions and uncertainties affecting these statements as well as Part I, Item 1A. “Risk Factors.”
For a discussion of a comparison of the years ended December 31, 2022 and December 31, 2021, please refer to "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 16, 2023.
Overview
We are a provider of high-quality in-home healthcare and related services to the chronic, co-morbid, aging American population, with approximately 73%, 74% and 75% of our consolidated net service revenue derived from Medicare for 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively.
Our operations involve servicing patients through our three reportable business segments: home health, hospice and high acuity care. We divested our personal care business on March 31, 2023. Our home health segment delivers a wide range of services in the homes of individuals who may be recovering from an illness, injury or surgery. Our hospice segment provides care that is designed to provide comfort and support for those who are facing a terminal illness. Our high acuity care segment delivers the essential elements of inpatient hospital, palliative and skilled nursing facility ("SNF") care to patients in their homes. As of December 31, 2023, we owned and operated 346 Medicare-certified home health care centers, 165 Medicare-certified hospice care centers andApril 10, admitting high acuity care joint ventures in 37 states within the United States and the District of Columbia.
Care Centers Summary (Includes Unconsolidated Joint Ventures)
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Home Health | | Hospice | | Personal Care | | High Acuity Care (1) |
| At December 31, 2020 | 320 | | | 180 | | | 14 | | | — | |
| Acquisitions/Expansions/De novos | 11 | | | 1 | | | — | | | 7 | |
| Closed/Consolidated | — | | | (6) | | | — | | | — | |
| At December 31, 2021 | 331 | | | 175 | | | 14 | | | 7 | |
| Acquisitions/Expansions/De novos | 27 | | | — | | | — | | | 2 | |
| Closed/Consolidated | (11) | | | (11) | | | (1) | | | (1) | |
| At December 31, 2022 | 347 | | | 164 | | | 13 | | | 8 | |
| Acquisitions/Expansions/De novos | 2 | | | 1 | | | — | | | 2 | |
| Closed/Consolidated | (3) | | | — | | | (13) | | | — | |
| At December 31, 2023 | 346 | | | 165 | | | — | | | 10 | |
(1)As of December 31, 2023, we have 10 admitting high acuity care joint ventures, which operate in 11 markets.
Proposed Merger
On June 26, 2023, Amedisys, UnitedHealth Group Incorporated, a Delaware corporation ("UnitedHealth Group"), and Aurora Holdings Merger Sub Inc., a Delaware corporation and a wholly owned subsidiary of UnitedHealth Group ("Merger Sub"), entered into an Agreement and Plan of Merger (the "Merger Agreement"), pursuant to which Merger Sub will merge with and into Amedisys with Amedisys continuing as the surviving corporation and becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of UnitedHealth Group (the “Merger”).
Subject to the terms and conditions set forth in the Merger Agreement, at the effective time of the Merger (the "Effective Time"), by virtue of the Merger: (i) each share of Amedisys common stock (“Amedisys Common Stock”) held in treasury by Amedisys or owned by UnitedHealth Group or Merger Sub or any of their respective subsidiaries, in each case, immediately prior to the Effective Time will be cancelled (collectively, “cancelled shares”) without consideration; and (ii) each share of
Amedisys Common Stock, other than any cancelled shares, issued and outstanding immediately prior to the Effective Time will be converted into the right to receive $101 per share in cash, without interest, less any applicable withholding taxes.
The Merger is subject to a number of conditions to closing as specified in the Merger Agreement. These closing conditions include, among others, (i) approval by Amedisys stockholders at the Amedisys Stockholders Meeting (as defined in the Merger Agreement) of the proposal to adopt the Merger Agreement, which approval was obtained on September 8, 2023; (ii) the expiration or termination of the applicable waiting period (and any extension thereof) under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976, as amended; (iii) the receipt of the required state regulatory approvals; (iv) the absence of any law or order that has the effect of enjoining or otherwise prohibiting the completion of the Merger; and (v) the expiration or early termination of the waiting period (and any extension thereof) applicable to the consummation of the transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement under all applicable antitrust laws without the imposition by any governmental entity of any term, condition, obligation, requirement, limitation, prohibition, remedy, sanction or other action that has resulted in or would reasonably be expected to result in a Burdensome Condition (as defined in the Merger Agreement). Due to these conditions and other contingencies, there can be no assurance that the Merger will be successfully completed. During the periods prior to and including the date of the closing of the Merger, we expect to incur significant additional merger-related expenses. See Part I, Item 1A. “Risk Factors.”
Termination of Option Care Heath, Inc. ("OPCH") Merger Agreement
As previously disclosed in Amedisys’ Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on May 3, 2023 and its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the SEC on May 4, 2023, Amedisys entered into an Agreement and Plan of Merger on May 3, 2023 (the “OPCH Merger Agreement”) with OPCH, a Delaware corporation, and Uintah Merger Sub, Inc., a Delaware corporation and wholly-owned subsidiary of OPCH (“OPCH Merger Sub”). On June 26, 2023, Amedisys, OPCH and OPCH Merger Sub entered into the Termination Agreement (the “Termination Agreement”), pursuant to which the parties thereto agreed to terminate the OPCH Merger Agreement and grant mutual releases by the parties of all claims against the other parties based upon, arising from, in connection with or relating to the OPCH Merger Agreement. Pursuant to the terms of the Termination Agreement, each of the termination of the OPCH Merger Agreement and the mutual releases provided for in the Termination Agreement would become effective upon receipt by OPCH of a $106,000,000 termination fee payable by, or on behalf of, Amedisys within 24 hours of the execution of the Termination Agreement (i.e., before the market open on June 27, 2023). On June 26, 2023, following the execution of the Termination Agreement, UnitedHealth Group, on behalf of Amedisys, delivered funds to OPCH in an amount equal to $106,000,000, representing the termination fee payable to OPCH under the OPCH Merger Agreement and the Termination Agreement, satisfying the condition precedent to the effectiveness of the termination of the OPCH Merger Agreement and the releases contained in the Termination Agreement. If the Merger Agreement is terminated under certain specified circumstances, Amedisys may be required to reimburse UnitedHealth Group for the $106,000,000 termination fee that UnitedHealth Group, on Amedisys’ behalf, paid to OPCH in addition to the $125,000,000 termination fee payable by Amedisys to UnitedHealth Group upon termination of the Merger Agreement. The $106,000,000 termination fee was recorded to other income (expense) within our consolidated statement of operations with a corresponding liability to termination fee paid by UnitedHealth Group within our consolidated balance sheet during the year ended December 31, 2023.
Executive Leadership
On March 13, 2023, our Board of Directors namedappointed Richard Ashworth to serve as the Company’sour President and Chief Executive Officer and elected Mr. Ashworth as a director, all effective April 10, 2023.director. Paul B. Kusserow ceased serving as Chief Executive Officer effective on April 10, 2023 but continues to serve as our Chairman of the Board.
Accordingly, our Named Executive Officers for 2023 are as follows:
Personal Care Divestiture
On FebruaryRichard Ashworth—Chief Executive Officer (effective April 10, 2023);
Paul B. Kusserow—former Chief Executive Officer (until April 10, 2023) and Chairman of the Board;
Scott G. Ginn—Chief Operating Officer, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer;
Michael P. North—Chief Information Officer;
Nick Muscato—Chief Strategy Officer; and
Denise Bohnert—Chief Compliance Officer.
Executive Summary
Key 2023 we signedEvents and Compensation Highlights
| • | | Pending Merger with UnitedHealth Group: On June 26, 2023, Amedisys, UnitedHealth Group Incorporated, a Delaware corporation (“UnitedHealth Group”), and Aurora Holdings Merger Sub Inc., a Delaware corporation and a wholly owned subsidiary of UnitedHealth Group (“Merger Sub”), entered into an Agreement and Plan of Merger (the “Merger Agreement”), pursuant to which Merger Sub will merge with and into Amedisys with Amedisys continuing as the surviving corporation and becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of UnitedHealth Group (the “Merger”). The Merger is subject to a number of conditions to closing as specified in the Merger Agreement. |
| • | | Retention Compensation in Connection with Pending Merger: |
| • | | Retention Equity Awards Granted to Messrs. Ashworth and Ginn: On June 26, 2023, the Compensation Committee approved one-time equity award grants of time-based restricted stock units (“RSUs”) that vest ratably over three years to Mr. Ashworth, with a $2.5 million grant date value, and to Mr. Ginn, with a $1.5 million grant date value, in exchange for Messrs. Ashworth and Ginn agreeing not to resign their employment with UnitedHealth Group for Good Reason (as defined in the CEO Severance Plan (for Mr. Ashworth), the Executive Severance Plan (for Mr. Ginn) and the 2018 Omnibus Incentive Compensation Plan) due to a material diminution of their authority, responsibilities or duties during the six-month period following the effective time of the Merger (the “Effective Time”). |
| • | | Cash Retention Awards Granted to Mr. Muscato and Ms. Bohnert: In connection with entering into the Merger Agreement, the Compensation Committee approved cash retention awards to Mr. Muscato ($250,000, which was increased to $400,000 in August 2023 as discussed below) and Ms. Bohnert ($150,000). One-fourth of the retention awards was paid at the time of grant, another 1/4 of the awards will be paid upon the closing of the |
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