Gary W. Herschman, Anjana D. Patel, and Zachary Taylor, attorneys in the Health Care & Life Sciences practice, in the firm’s Newark office, were quoted in Bloomberg Health Law & Business News, in “Health-Care Deals Stay Strong in August Amid Covid-19 Surge,” by Christopher Brown.
Following is an excerpt:
The pace of mergers and acquisitions in health care remained brisk in August and appears likely to continue or accelerate for the rest of what could be a record-setting year. …
The life sciences and health-care information technology sectors led the way during August, with 53 and 36 closed and announced transactions, respectively.
Other leading sectors included medical devices, cannabis, and physician practices, according to Anjana Patel of Epstein Becker & Green PC in Newark, N.J.
The total number of deals for the year could exceed 3,000, which would stand as a record, said Gary Herschman, also of EBG. …
New Normal for Cannabis
The cannabis sector saw 28 transactions, a high level of activity that has become “the new normal,” said Zachary Taylor of EBG in Newark.
The August number was a jump over July’s total of 20 deals, and brought the year’s total to 187, nearly double that for the same period in 2020.
Dealmaking has spread beyond the states that legalized marijuana early on and now typically involves 10 states per month or more, Taylor said.
The market also has expanded beyond typical activity—manufacturing, processing, and dispensing—to include transactions involving private equity, analytics, and laboratories, he said.
Physician practices and services finished August with 24 deals closed or announced, up from 19 in July, said Herschman.
That pace is likely to grow for the rest of the year, said Hector M. Torres of Focal Point Partners in Chicago. “With so many physician groups currently undergoing transaction processes, we expect the last four months to outpace the volume thus far this year, and conclude with over 400 deals by the end of the year,” he said. …
Home Health Sector
Home care and hospice had an active month in August, with 15 transactions announced or closed, up from eight in July and seven in August 2020. …
The hospitals and health systems sector also saw an uptick in deal activity, said Patel.
Notable transactions include Steward Health’s acquisition of five hospitals from Tenet Healthcare Corp. for over $1.1 billion, Atlanta-based Piedmont Healthcare’s acquisition of four Georgia hospitals for $950 million, and Southern Illinois Healthcare Enterprises’ acquisition of Harrisburg Medical Center, she said.
Concern about more aggressive antitrust enforcement from the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission could be spurring hospitals and health systems to close deals quickly, Patel said.
Epstein Becker Green and KPMG did not comment on any particular transaction or party discussed or listed in this article.
