Research: Private equity acquisitions of U.S. cardiology practices are rising rapidly in 2021

A nationwide study by health policy experts at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) finds that there has been a surge in the number of private equity (PE) firms acquiring outpatient cardiology practices in the United States.

Rishi K. Wadhera, MD, MPP, MPhil, associate director of the Richard A. and Susan F. Smith Center for Outcomes Research in Cardiology at BIDMC, and colleagues analyzed multiple databases to characterize PE acquisitions of outpatient cardiology clinics in the United States from 2013 to 2023. They found that 278 unique clinic locations were acquired by PE firms during the study period. Because nearly a quarter of the locations changed hands more than once, this represented 342 total PE acquisitions, with a full 95 percent occurring between 2021 and 2023. Overall, cardiology clinics in the South and West were more likely to be acquired by PE firms, with the highest acquisitions occurring in Florida, Texas, and Arizona.

Wadhera and colleagues found that PE firms disproportionately acquired cardiology practices located in affluent communities, which can draw capital and resources away from practices located in underserved communities. Nearly one in four cardiology practices acquired by PE changed hands more than once during the 10-year study—a familiar strategy used by private equity firms, which favor short-term investments of three to seven years. Shorter investment timelines encourage changes in care delivery that maximize profits but potentially compromise the quality of care for patients.

Read the full article in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology

BIDMC Study Authors: Victoria L. Bartlett, MD, PhD, Michael Liu, MA, Shylie Ati, BS, Robert W. Yeh, MD, MA, and Zhaonian Zheng, MA

COI: Dr. Wadhera discloses research support from National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and serves as a consultant for Abbott, CVS Health, and Chambercardio outside the submitted work. Dr. Yeh receives research support from National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and Richard A, and Susan F, Smith Center for Outcomes Research in Cardiology and reports receiving personal fees from Biosense Webster and grants and personal fees from Abbott Vascular, AstraZeneca, Boston Scientific, and Medtronic outside the submitted work. No other disclosures reported.

Citation: Bartlett, VL. (2024) “Private Equity Acquisitions of Outpatient Cardiology Practices in the United States 2013-23.” Journal of the American College of Cardiology (DOI TK)