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Apria acquires Knoll Patient Supply

Apria acquires Knoll Patient Supply

February 7, 2005 TOPEKA, Kan. - Apria scored an acquisition coup in late January when it acquired Knoll Patient Supply, a highly respected HME here owned by former AAHomecare Chairman Steve Knoll. Knoll generated revenues of about $5 million a year. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.     This is Apria's second high-profile acquisition in the past few months. In September, the national acquired Raymond, N.H.-based LifePlus, considered one of the best-run independent HMEs in the country. Due to the high profile and industry involvement of their owners, both the LifePlus and Knoll Patient Supply deal caught industry watchers by surprise. Executives at both HMEs, however, said their companies went out on top, which gave them leverage when negotiating the deals. “Knoll Patient Supply has never been stronger,” Knoll, 48, told HME News last week. “We just had our best year ever and were having an even better year up until Jan. 31 when we turned it over Apria. I found an opportunity to go out on top of our game and that is a good time to go out - to cash in.” In addition to cashing in, Knoll said, the current reimbursement climate contributed to his decision to sell. With Medicare reducing reimbursement and becoming more aggressive in its audits and with new HIPAA and FDA requirements, the industry's risk exposure has gone up significantly, Knoll said.

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