Home Health & Hospice Week

More fallout from the Senate's investigation into publicly traded home care companies' therapy practices has come to light.

Gentiva Health Services Inc. and LHC Group Inc. have reported big losses, adding to the loss reported by Amedisys Inc. slightly earlier. Only Almost Family Inc. managed to pull a small profit out of the quarter ended Sept. 30. Gentiva reported a massive $473.6 million loss for the quarter, greater than the $449.7 million it recorded in revenues. That compares to an 8.2 million profit on $379.7 million in revenues for the same period in 2010.

Gentiva's loss outstripped the $423.7 million one Baton Rouge, La.-based Amedisys announced earlier (see Eli's HCW, Vol. XX, No. 39, p. 312). Atlanta-based Gentiva's share price fell further on the earnings news. The shares have lost more than 80 percent of their value over the past year, reports Reuters.

"Between now and the end of the year, I expect uncertainty will continue and I expect the industry will be shaken by the (reimbursement) reductions" contained in the prospective payment system 2012 final rule, CEO Tony Strange said on an earnings call, according to Reuters. "Companies will consolidate and some companies will be forced to close." Gentiva isn't considering selling, however, Strange maintained.

Gentiva plans to close 33 home health agency locations and nine hospice ones, it says.

Lafayette, La.-based LHC reported a $55.3 million loss on $153.4 million in revnues for the quarter. That's compared to a $25.7 million profit on $165.7 million in revnues for the year-ago quarter. "The third quarter of 2011 presented LHC Group with many short-term challenges," CEO Keith Myers states in a release.

Lousiville, Ky.-based Almost Family's  earnings drop looks almost rosy in comparison to the other "Big Four" companies' results. The chain reported a $4.8 million profit on $86.2 million in revenues, compared to $7.9 million in net income on $84.4 million in revenues for the same period in 2010.

Highlight: Both Gentiva and Almost Family did increase their year-over-year revenues.  

Almost Family cites the new face-to-face and therapy reassessment requirements as factors in its earnings report. The company "continued to experience softer than normal admission volumes and a decline in re-certifications," it notes.

Almost Family expects the cuts in the 2012 PPS final rule to reduce its Medicare payment rates by up to 5.5 percent, it adds. That's nearly the double 2.3 percent average for the nation.