Dive Brief:
- Tenet and its subsidiary USPI completed a $1.1 billion acquisition of SurgCenter Development, giving the ambulatory surgery unit an ownership stake in 86 more surgery centers and related support services.
- Tenet said it's willing to buy additional interests of up to $250 million from physician owners. This process is expected to continue over the coming months, Tenet said Wednesday.
- As part of the deal, USPI will have exclusivity on developing new centers — at minimum 50 — with SCD during a five-year period.
Dive Insight:
This is the second deal with SCD as Tenet continues to build out its surgery center footprint, a key component of its long-term strategy.
Last year, Tenet and USPI inked a separate $1 billion deal with SCD to acquire more than 40 ambulatory surgery centers, giving USPI a 60% stake in the company. This latest agreement greatly expands on the first.
Now, USPI will have more than 440 centers in 35 states, Tenet said when the latest pact was first announced. The deal boosts USPI's footprint in Florida and gives the unit entry into new markets such as the state of Michigan.
Tenet, a legacy hospital operator, is shifting more of its focus to outpatient surgery centers as long-term industry trends are pushing more care outside of the walls of a traditional hospital. Tenet's surgery center portfolio is now much larger than its hospital business. The health system expects its surgery center business to represent half of its overall earnings this year.
SVB Leerink analysts previously characterized the deal as savvy and said it will reshape the company's earnings toward a "faster growing, higher margin, and improved capital return profile."
Just a few months ago, Tenet and USPI signed another deal with Compass Surgical Partners to acquire its ownership and management interests in nine ambulatory surgery centers.