Allcare Hospice purchased

TUPELO — Amedisys Inc. of Baton Rouge, La., has acquired a hospice business with nine locations in South Carolina and one location in Mississippi. Terms were not disclosed.

This acquisition, which represents Amedisys’ entry into the hospice business in both South Carolina and Mississippi, will allow Amedisys to provide coverage to the entire state of South Carolina and to 17 counties in Mississippi. The business operates as Winyah Community Hospice Care in South Carolina and Allcare Hospice in Tupelo. The agencies had annualized revenue of approximately $17 million, but are not expected to add materially to Amedisys earnings in 2009.

“This acquisition highlights our business strategy of strategically growing our hospice business, especially in markets that overlap with our home health business. We strongly believe in the benefits that hospice care provides to those patients in their last months of life and we will continue to selectively expand this business over time,” said William F. Borne, CEO of Amedisys.