Are you paying attention?

One of the main themes of the education at this year’s HME News Business Summit, Sept. 18-20 in Nashville, Tenn., will be the increasing interest in the home – the products and services provided there – by larger players in health care and investors. 

Scan the stories in the July issue and you’ll see why. 

Take this story, “AmerisourceBergen “de-risks” home infusion (see page 12).” Here we have AmerisourceBergen, a global health care company that’s ranked #8 on the Fortune 500 with more than $200 billion in annual revenue, developing a program to help hospitals and health systems launch or optimize infusion service lines in the home. 

“This is the next pivot in the market, based off talking to our customers, to help them de-risk the entry into home infusion,” says Dan Teich, vice president of client strategies for the company. “It also has to do with payer trends – the idea of shifting patients away from hospital-based infusion centers. It’s really just a growing market.” 

Market and payer trends are pushing hospitals and health systems to extend their reach into the home and now they have a powerful ally in AmerisourceBergen. 

The news begged the question: What does this mean for home infusion providers? In this story, “Health systems ‘follow patient’ into the home to provide infusion (see page 1),” at least one industry analyst, Jonathan Sadock, says it could create opportunities for those providers. 

“Part of the reason is, certainly the ability to provide service, but (also) I think the pie is getting bigger,” he says. “More patients are getting more advanced infusion treatments (in the home). I think there’s less of a concern that a competitor is going to take away business than an opportunity to expand their practice.” 

Sadock hits at the crux of the issue: Does this news create an opportunity for home infusion providers to expand their businesses? He thinks so; do you? 

Another group with increasing interest in the home: investors, which are pumping money into HME companies. Take this story, “Central Medical stays ahead (see page 1),” which details the Osceola Capital-backed provider’s acquisition of three companies in a bid to smooth out pressures like supply chain constraints, inflation and rising fuel prices with increased size. 

“We’re trying to stay ahead of the curve,” says Joe Sacco, president and CEO Central Medical Supply. “Smaller providers are having a lot of difficulty dealing with those challenges.” 

Or take this story, “Lifeway powers up presence out West (see page 11),” which details the Cressey & Company-backed provider’s latest in a steady string of acquisitions. The backdrop: At least three other investor-backed companies also looking to increase their market share in the home access market (NSM, Numotion, SageHome). 

In fact, you can find evidence of this theme in most of the issues this year – in stories about Owens & Minor buying Apria Healthcare and Cardinal at Home investing in Medically Home and New Harbor Capital-backed Advent Home Medical buying Life Tech.  

It’s worth paying attention and asking the hard questions. What does this mean for my business? Does it create opportunities? Last but not least, who are my allies?