Healthcare and life sciences deal activity was up 40 percent year over year in November 2019, according to the 2020 KPMG Healthcare and Life Sciences Investment Outlook survey.
Five takeaways:
1. To boost referrals, hospitals and managed care plans have been acquiring physician practices over the past several years. Meanwhile, healthcare investors and independent physician management companies are focusing on building scale to support autonomous physician practices.
2. Nearly one-fifth of physicians, dental and rehab practices are interested in gaining investors. Some physician owners are pursuing deals to address profitability issues when eliminating administrative costs isn't enough.
3. Roll-up deals were the top growth strategy for 46 percent of respondents to KPMG's survey. Exploring ancillary revenue streams and aligning with value-based payment models were also paths to growth.
4. More roll-up deals are on the horizon for gastroenterology, orthopedics, podiatry and urology. Successful roll-up platforms will achieve integration of billing processes, EHRs, credentialing and coding.
5. Specialties with progressing and emerging platforms of scale are making deals to add ancillary or adjacent services. For instance, orthopedic surgeons are buying or affiliating with ASCs.