24 Hour Home Care Acquires Grace Care Management, ‘Actively’ Searching for More M&A Opportunities

In an effort to bolster its at-home care offerings in the San Diego market, 24 Hour Home Care has acquired Grace Care Management, another home care agency located in the area.

Since its founding in 2008, Los Angeles-based 24 Hour Home Care has grown quickly and steadily. But that growth has been mostly organic — until now.

Grace Care Management will become a part of the 24 Hour Home Care brand later this month. The deal will mark 24 Hour Home Care’s fifth acquisition overall.

“[Grace Care Management] has been in the San Diego area for nearly 20 years, so they’re really a staple of the community,” Andy Matthews, the VP of business development for 24 Hour Home Care, told Home Health Care News. “It made a lot of sense for us from that standpoint.”

24 Hour Home Care is an independent, non-medical home care provider with 20 locations spanning California, Arizona and Texas. It employs over 10,000 caregivers and has been one of the fastest growing companies in the U.S. for the past eight years, according to Inc. Magazine.

The acquisition of Grace Care Management was seamless considering that the two agencies have been working together since 2018, when Grace Care Management needed help with staffing capacity. Since then, 24 Hour Home Care has helped with any overflow the agency has had.

“But what we saw while helping was that they really have a patient-centered focus, and they also have a geriatric case manager — and we love that aspect,” Matthews said. “That’s something that really adds a lot of value to our clients, that we can now provide. It really seemed like this was the obvious next step.”

Grace Care Management is based in Ramona — a part of San Diego county — and expands 24 Hour Home Care’s footprint nicely in that area, Matthews noted. In addition to home care services, the organization also offers 24/7, on-call care management capabilities, as its name implies.

Ryan Iwamoto, the president and co-founder of 24 Hour Home Care, explained how the first decade of the company’s expansion was mostly driven by internal, organic growth on the most recent HHCN Disrupt podcast.

Now, the company’s success has positioned it to become more aggressive in M&A, Matthews said.

“We were very fortunate that Grace Care Management fell right into our lap,” Matthews said. “But we are actively looking for acquisitions as well. This is an active part of our strategy that we’re looking for new partners, whether it be in new markets or in our current market share.”

24 Hour Home Care’s strategy now will combine that trust in organic growth and growth through M&A. Matthews sees M&A as a way to add value to its existing markets and also expand to new markets in California, Texas and Arizona, and perhaps across the U.S. moving forward.

Cindy Hasz — the founder and CEO of Grace Care Management, and the geriatric expert that 24 Hour Home Care was so eager to add to its network — believes that the move will be mutually beneficial. 

“We’ve been looking for a partner that could provide the tech infrastructure that will create greater efficiencies,” Hasz said in a press release. “This is a win-win for seniors and those with special needs throughout San Diego because they will get the best of both worlds – the same great caregivers they know and love along with access to a staff of experts that can provide counsel any time they need it.”

Broadly, an increasing number of home health and home care companies have been active in seeking care management assets.

In August, for example, Caring People completed a handful of deals driven by a focus on care management. Meanwhile, in January, Arosa+LivHome acquired Lifecare Innovations to expand its care management footprint.

The focus on care management is likely to continue heading into 2021, especially as providers build out their service lines and care for more clients or patients on a longitudinal basis.

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