Hospitals in 2021 inked M&A deals aimed at stabilizing their pandemic-shaken core operations, according to a new analysis from Kaufman Hall, reports Healthcare Dive. It was a year marked by a significant drop in transactions across the sector overall, but a higher percentage of larger-sized deals.
Just 49 health system mergers were announced in 2021, down from 79 in 2020 and the lowest number in a decade, according to the report. Yet the number of “mega mergers” in which the seller’s annual revenue exceeds $1 billion almost doubled, reaching 16.3% in 2021, compared to 8.9% the year before. More than 12% of the smaller partners in those deals had a credit rating of A- or higher.
Hospitals are also entering a new phase in healthcare dealmaking focused on partnerships that will look to tackle broader societal problems and address the needs of underserved populations, the industry consultants said. Read more.
