Physicians Health Choice, a Subsidiary of
WellMed Medical Management Acquires Citrus Health Care
On April 10th, Physicians Health Choice announced that it closed its acquisition of Tampa-based Citrus Health Care, Inc. Physicians Health Choice is a subsidiary of San Antonio-based WellMed Medical Management. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. Citrus Health Care is headquartered in Tampa, Florida, and was incorporated in 2003. According to the press release, Citrus Health Care serves approximately 10,000 Medicare Advantage members and 44,000 Medicaid members mainly in central and southern Florida. The plan's product mix also includes a commercial individual product and a long term care product. According to Jeff White, Vice President of Marketing and Business Development for Physicians Health Choice, the Citrus Health Care brand name will be retained in its Florida markets and its operations will continue to be based out of Tampa.
The acquisition of Citrus is believed to be beneficial for both WellMed Medical Management and its members. According to White, the acquisition "immediately establishes a significant membership base in Florida." He adds that for its members, the benefits of the transaction will initially be marginal, but eventually the increased membership will "afford us the opportunity to invest more resources to achieve an even higher level of quality and service across all our markets."
WellMed Medical Management is based in San Antonio, Texas, and is a physician owned practice management company. WellMed primarily provides services to Medicare and Medicaid eligible members and patients The company has approximately thirty clinics in Texas and Florida and employs over sixty physicians and specialists. Prior to its acquisition of Citrus, WellMed served approximately 30,000 health plan members.
The terms of the transaction were not disclosed, as a result we are unable to calculate valuation statistics. According to Citrus Health Care's statutory statements from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), the company reported premium revenues of $289.5 million for 2009. The company's operating income was $1.0 million with an operating margin of 0.4%. The company recorded $791,000 in non-operating earnings. Net income was $1.7 million, while the net margin was 0.6%. The health benefit ratio was 87.7% and its administrative expense to premium ratio was 12.0%.
Article originally published in PULSE, a monthly publication by Sherlock Company, a Pennsylvania Corporation.
