A cardiologist and a CEO share their perspective on acquisition trends

Fry later added that “we also need to understand the noneconomic factors that drive cardiologists to obtain services through this medium.”

“Is it all about money, or is the shift to PE symptomatic of more fundamental problems with current medical and cardiology practice? Physicians, health system administrators, policymakers, and society need to define the elements of clinical practice that are driving more cardiologists to seek alternative employment models. Addressing these will be essential to truly transform care and promote equity and value,” he concluded.

Private Equity Viewpoint: Cardiovascular Associates of America CEO Shares His Perspective

Cardiovascular Business spoke with Tim Attebery, PhD, MBA, CEO of Cardiovascular Associates of America (CVAUSA) and former CEO of ACC, about JACQ analysis. CVAUSA is one of the most prominent PE-supported cardiology management groups in the country, with 23 practices and approximately 400 cardiologists under its auspices.

According to Attebery, the study authors made the number of PE procedures in cardiology appear higher than it actually was because they treated each facility as a separate clinic.

“If we took over a practice with seven offices, they would call it seven clinics,” he said. “Well, it’s not seven clinics, it’s one clinic with seven locations.”

Attebery also said that in his own experience with CVAUSA, cardiology practices aren’t being sold and resold as often as the study authors wrote in their analysis. Companies are required to file certain documents that show a change in control, and those documents must be filed separately for each physical location, but he hasn’t seen practices sold multiple times in such a short period of time.

Beyond those concerns, Attebery said he is “generally pleased” that so many cardiologists and cardiology leaders are paying attention to this growing trend.

He also said the number of U.S. cardiologists being backed by PE firms remains quite low — “still small compared” to the number of those who “have been absorbed by hospitals.”