Private-equity firms own some of the largest fertility-services providers in the U.S. after several years of buying practices and expanding them through acquisitions, fueled by surging demand as health plans increasingly cover fertility treatments and more people start families later in life, The Wall Street Journal reports.
“Infertility is an epidemic globally,” said Collins Ward, a partner at Lee Equity Partners, who added that demand for specialized services has outstripped the supply of expertise in certain healthcare specialties like reproductive endocrinology and infertility, or REI.
“Our biggest [obstacle] is not demand for our services. It’s qualified nurses, embryologists and physicians,” said TJ Farnsworth, CEO of Lee Equity Partners-backed Inception Fertility. Read more.
