Fresh off a quarter filled with nearly 20 acquisition deals and announcements, LHC shows no signs of slowing down in the months -- or years -- to come.

In this episode of Disrupt, Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer Bruce Greenstein gives listeners some insight into the home health giant’s “maniacal” JV execution, disaster plan strategy and recent explosion in ACO involvement.

Listen to this episode of Disrupt to learn:

- How home health providers can get into the ACO game

- Why LHC Group is more bullish on its JV strategy than ever before

- What Greenstein says is LHC Group’s “best kept secret”

- … And much more!

With a new EVP, one of the oldest and largest nonprofit home- and community-based health care organizations in the country has its eyes set on the future.

In this episode of Disrupt, you’ll hear from Andria Castellanos, executive vice president and chief of provider services at the Visiting Nurse Service of New York (VNSNY).

Castellanos recently sat down with HHCN to reflect on her first six months in the new position and the direction in which she's the taking VNSNY.

Listen to this episode of Disrupt to learn:

- How VNSNY is preparing for PDGM and other regulatory headwinds

- Why Castellanos is leaning into social determinants of health and value-based contracts

- What goes into managing successful managed care relationships

- …And much more!

Encompass Health is one of the nation’s largest providers of post-acute health care services, offering both facility-based and home-based patient care in 36 states and Puerto Rico through its network of in-patient rehabilitation hospitals, home health agencies and hospice agencies.

CEO April Anthony leads the company’s expanding home health and hospice business. That expansion most recently includes Encompass Health’s plans to acquire Alacare for a price tag north of $200 million.

Listen to this episode of Disrupt to learn:

-- Why Encompass Health announced plans to acquire Alacare Home Health & Hospice

-- How the company plans to adapt to the Patient-Driven Groupings Model and mitigate certain aspects of the model

-- Why Encompass Health prioritizes workplace culture

... and much more!

Since joining Amedisys (Nasdaq: AMED) in 2014, CEO Paul Kusserow has spearheaded an ambitious turnaround effort, during which time the company’s stock has climbed from around $20 per share to the more than $130 per share range it sits at today.

Most of Amedisys’ growth over the years has come organically, though the Baton Rouge, Louisiana-based company has been active on the M&A front as well, reflected by its two recent hospice deals.

Listen to this episode of Disrupt to learn:

- What Amedisys is doing to prepare for PDGM

- How the company has grown over the last four years

- Why Amedisys is becoming an even bigger hospice player

- …And much more!

As the population ages, the caregiver shortage worsens and Medicare Advantage plans continue to add supplemental benefits, the home care industry is becoming increasingly complex. In this episode, you’ll hear how Neal Kursban -- CEO of Family & Nursing Care, one of the largest private pay home care companies in the Washington, D.C area -- is navigating those challenges and more to keep his 50-year-old company at the front of the pack.

Listen to this episode of Disrupt to learn:

- How Family & Nursing Care drove its caregiver turnover rate down to 14%

- Why profit margin doesn’t tell an agency’s whole story

- What’s prompting the family-owned agency to expand after decades in business

- …And much more!

Michigan-based Great Lakes Caring, Connecticut-based National Home Health Care and Texas-based Jordan Health Services were -- not too long ago -- three separate home-based care providers. Backed by Blue Wolf Capital Partners and Kelso & Company, they came together in a three-way mega-merger in May 2018, officially rebranding under the Elara Caring name in July.

G. Scott Herman serves as CEO of Elara Caring -- now one of the largest home health providers in the country, serving more than 65,000 patients and their families daily with services that span the continuum of personal care, skilled home health and hospice care.

Using predictive analytics to enable longitudinal care will be one of the keys for Elara Caring moving forward, as will its behavioral health offerings.

HHCN caught up with Herman to hear about his plans for the company moving forward, including its take on preparing for the Patient-Driven Groupings Model (PDGM).

Listen to this episode of Disrupt to learn:

-- Why three successful home-based care providers came together to form Elara Caring

-- What the M&A landscape will look like throughout 2019, especially as private equity buyers hope to stay active

-- How Elara Caring plans on shifting care from an episodic basis to a more longitudinal nature

... and much more!

Cincinnati-based FirstLight Home Care -- named to Franchise Times’ Fast & Serious List in January -- is one of the largest home care franchise systems in the country. FirstLight has seen steady year-over-year growth with CEO Jeff Bevis at the helm, but industry headwinds and a changing regulatory environment may present obstacles for the franchise giant moving forward.

Among FirsLight's big plans: a new brain health program, tackling senior isolation, eyeing Medicare Advantage (MA) opportunities and pushing a conversion model to bring independent agencies into its vast network.

HHCN caught up with Bevis to talk about his plans for FirstLight and learn how home care agencies are carving out an important role in the overall care continuum.

Since taking over as president of the National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) in early 2018, Bill Dombi has spearheaded the organization’s advocacy efforts on Capitol Hill on behalf of its 33,000 or so home care, hospice and home health members.

With major policies such as the Patient-Driven Groupings Model (PDGM) and the Review Choice Demonstration (RCD), 2018 has been a busy year for NAHC.

2019 is likely to bring more of the same, perhaps made event more complicated by congressional changes and increased oversight, especially for the hospice industry.

Dombi shed some light on his advocacy plans for the year ahead with HHCN.

Since joining HomeWatch Caregivers in 2015, Julie Smith has led the company from being family-owned to being in private equity ownership, through transactions that set industry records for their multiples. Today, HomeWatch Caregivers is leveraging the PE capital to expand its footprint, and it is also bolstering its technology platform to drive care coordination and other efforts --- all of which are making the company into a true disruptor, Smith believes. She is bullish on Medicare Advantage, but also has concerns about how to better match up the franchise-based home care model with the needs of increasing care coordination with different types of payers and providers.

Listen to this episode of Disrupt to learn:

-- Why home care is such an attractive opportunity for private equity and why the current market for home care is "irrational"

-- Details of HomeWatch Caregivers' initiative to build a more robust technology platform, taking cures from startups that have entered the industry in the last several years

-- Lessons Smith learned from her time in different industries, including education, and how those translate into her role leading a large home care franchisor

This episode of Disrupt is sponsored by Homecare Homebase, whose powerful, cloud-based home health software streamlines virtually every aspect of your business. spend less time on paperwork and more time delivering quality care to the patients who need you. Visit hchb.com to learn more.

In his first year as CEO of ComForCare, Steve Greenbaum has focused on learning the ins-and-outs of home care while helping shape the company's innovative approach to growth. ComForCare is part of an expanding platform of related franchise brands owned by private equity firm The Riverside Company, with the goal of providing wrap-around services for older adults. As part of this strategy, ComForCare is also striking partnerships across the care continuum, including with Kindred at Home. In addition, ComForCare is investing heavily in technology, upgrading systems for its more than 200 independently owned locations in the U.S. and Canada.

Listen to this episode of Disrupt to learn:

-- Why Greenbaum believes differentiating ComForCare from the competition is mission critical, and how the company is striving to accomplish this goal

-- Details of how and why ComForCare and The Riverside Company are establishing a multi-brand platform, including through the recent acquisition of Care Patrol

-- How Greenbaum views the Medicare Advantage opportunity and his vision for the future of home care

This episode of Disrupt is sponsored by Homecare Homebase, whose powerful, cloud-based home health software streamlines virtually every aspect of your business. spend less time on paperwork and more time delivering quality care to the patients who need you. Visit hchb.com to learn more.