HealthSouth Corporation, the largest owner and operator of inpatient rehabilitation hospitals, has completed its previously announced acquisition of privately held EHHI Holdings, Inc., which owns Encompass Home Health and Hospice (Encompass).

Founded in 1998 and based in Dallas, Texas, Encompass is the fifth largest provider of Medicare-focused, skilled home health services in the United States. It operates 140 locations across 13 states and employs approximately 5,000 healthcare and support professionals who provide more than 2.1 million patient visits annually. Encompass was previously owned by a group led by Cressey & Company LP, a leading healthcare-focused private investment firm.

"Today we are very pleased to announce the acquisition of Encompass Home Health and Hospice," said Jay Grinney, HealthSouth president and chief executive officer. "Encompass' exceptional management team, strong corporate culture, and track record of providing high-quality, cost-effective home care and hospice services complements HealthSouth's leadership position in inpatient rehabilitation. In addition to being best-of-class operators, Encompass has demonstrated an ability to acquire home health and hospice entities and successfully incorporate them onto their operating platform. By utilizing HealthSouth's strong free cash flow and access to capital, we believe we can provide additional value to our shareholders by accelerating the pace of consolidation of the home health and hospice sectors while, at the same time, continuing to grow our inpatient rehabilitation hospital portfolio. Bringing these two companies together also positions HealthSouth to be highly competitive in the evolving healthcare delivery system by allowing us to offer both facility-based as well as home-based post-acute services on a comprehensive, coordinated basis."  

J P Morgan Securities LLC acted as exclusive financial advisor to HealthSouth. Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP acted as legal advisor to HealthSouth.