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May 4,  2012

Quote of the Week:

“The Secret Service scandal was discovered when a disagreement on how much a prostitute wanted for her services came to light. She wanted $800. The Secret Service Agent offered $30. How ironic is it that the only person in Washington willing to cut spending gets fired?”.    Harry Newton

HOT OFF THE PRESS: 

Headline Florida: On May 2nd the feds charged 107 suspects with submitting $452 million in false bills to Medicare in seven U.S. cities. In Miami alone, 59 of those defendants — including three nurses and two therapists — were accused of trying to steal $137 million from the taxpayer-funded healthcare program.

Not surprisingly, “South Florida has the lion’s share of the cases,” U.S. Attorney Wifredo Ferrer told reporters after 22 indictments were unsealed in Miami federal court.

This follows up on last month’s announcement of the arrest of a Dallas physician, his office manager, and five owners of home health agencies who were arrested on charges related to their alleged participation in a nearly $375 million health care fraud scheme involving fraudulent claims for home health service.

Looks like the Feds are really moving on fraud.

We just returned from….

Chicago for Decision Health’s M&A Home Health Conference.  There were two full days of presentations by the industry leaders.  We gave two presentations, the first was “Building the Value of a Home Health Agency.  The second was “Negotiating Your Way Through the Sale of an Agency, Beyond Just Price.”

We also attended the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization’s (NHPCO) annual conference in Washington, DC where we met with many owners and buyers of hospices.  The market for these companies continues to be very good, with prices holding up well.

SOLD:

NEW: Providence Homecare Services, located in Lufkin, Texas sold to a large regional homecare  provider.   The owner was represented by two of our partners, Cory Mertz and Charles Cook.

The Home Team of Kansas, primarily a Medicaid reimbursed agency, sold to a regional home care company.  Susan Moyer, one of our partners provided sell-side representation.

Partners Assisted Living Services, a New Mexico private duty agency sold last week to a regional home care provider.  Susan Moyer, one of our partners provided sell-side representation. “Susan, we enjoyed working with you and appreciate all of your help. “

Earlier Ann Sonnier sold her Louisiana Medicare Home Health and Hospice Agency to a financial buyer.    Cory Mertz  handled this sale representing Ann.

See our website tab titled “Completed Transactions” for further sales.

Favorite cartoon….

“To tax and to please, no more than to love and be wise, is not given to man.” Edmund Burke

Home Health Index:

Check out our new web feature, a tab on our front page titled Home Health Index. We have indexed the stock prices of the four major public Medicare companies. We think you will find the results interesting.

 We Just Returned From…..

• National Hospice and Palliative Care Organizations annual conference in Washington DC.

• Illinois Annual conference in Rosemont, IL

• Decision Health’s annual Private Duty Conference in Las Vegas

• NAHC’s Annual Private Duty conference in Las Vegas, which we also sponsored.

• NAHC’s annual conference in Las Vegas

• Ohio’s annual home care conference in Columbus

• NAHC’s annual financial management conference in San Diego.

• NHPCO’s annual conference in Washington, DC

We met with many buyers of home health agencies and hospices.  In spite of the headwinds our industry is facing, the market for the sale of these businesses continues to be excellent.

Thank you to those that attended and visited our booth.

Cory Mertz, taking care of business at NAHC’s Financial Conference

 Susan Moyer taking care of business at the Decision Health’s National Private Duty Conference in Las Vegas.

 ….and as our country continues to borrow 40 cents of every dollar spent

 

Previous Favorite quotes……

“I don’t know, my dreams have never taken me this far”  Bubba Watson’s response to the question “How do you feel now going home to your new baby as the Masters champion”.

“Never let go of the sled.”  Daniel Dent and his number one rule in dog sledding.  Dent, who manages a $3.6 billion mutual fund, also races in the grueling Iditarod dog sled race.   His fund has an average return of 6.75% over the past decade versus 5.7% for the average.  Something to think about when the going gets tough, and you are thinking about giving up.

“A great wind of change is blowing which  will either spark your imagination or give you a headache. ”  Catherine the Great

“Christmas is a time when children tell Santa Claus what they want, and we pay for it.  Now, with the budget deficits, we tell the government what we want, and our children pay for it. Josef Ackermann, CEO. Deutsche Bank”

“I simply do not know where the money is”   John Corzine, former New Jersey senator and current CEO of bankrupted MF Global.  His testimony on the missing $1.2 billion in client money

“How can a nation that borrows money to survive, allocate billions of dollars to other nations. You borrow money to give it away. Amazing!”   Richard Russell, Dow Theory Letters

“Washington is eight square miles surrounded by reality”  John Kennedy (or someone else)

“Hitting a home run was the last thing I was thinking about”

Derek Jeter, after he slams a home run for his 3,000th base hit.  Lesson being: You don’t need to swing for the fences; base hits will do just fine.

“If at first you don’t succeed, you’re running about average” M.H. Anderson

“It’s all about the short game.” Pam Cummins, on learning that Luke Donald, although ranked 163rd in driving distance, is now ranked number one in the world.  Lesson being…. focus on what produces results.

“Justice has been done.”  Barack Obama regarding Osama Ben Laden’s death

The current monetary system based on competing fiat currencies is like a drunken sailor who is unsteady on his feet while trying to adjust the ship’s broken compass.” Richard Russell

“To tax and to please, no more than to love and be wise, is not given to man.” Edmund Burke

I’ve got tiger blood in my veins. Charlie Sheen

“The only way you can hurt the body is not use it,”  Inactivity is the killer.  Remember, it’s never too late.” Jack LaLanne,   says his final farewell at 96.

“We’ve done better by avoiding dragons than by slaying them.” Warren Buffet

” The days of our lives are numbered, we know that.  But I have found that in the simple act of living with hope, and in the daily effort to have a positive impact in the world, the days I do have are made all the more meaningful and precious.” Elizabeth Edwards, July 3, 1949 – Dec. 7, 2010

“We have determined that our disclosure controls and procedures and out internal control over financial reporting are currently not effective.  The lack of effective internal controls could materially adversely affect our financial condition and ability to carry our our business plan.”…….A disclaimer in the Prospectus for the new General Motors IPO.

  “Price is what you pay, value is what you get.” Warren Buffet

“When you try to dodge ownership of a problem, when you try to hide from responsibility, life will give you ownership and responsibility the hard way”  Peggy Noonan, Wall Street Journal

“The budget should be balanced, the treasury should be refilled, the arrogance of officiadom should be tempered and controlled, people must again learn to work instead of living on public assistance, and the assistance to foreign lands should be curtailed lest Rome become bankrupt.”  Cicero, 55 BC

“Our financial health is directly related to our national security”  Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff

“A dollar borrowed is a dollar earned”    U.S. Government

It was easy…they sunk my boat.

John F. Kennedy to a high school student who asked how he had become a war hero.

Christmas is a time when children tell Santa Claus what they want, and we pay for it.  Now, with the budget deficits, we tell the government what we want, and our children pay for it. Josef Ackermann, CEO. Deutsche Bank

“Regardless of the dollar price involved, one ounce of gold would purchase a qood quality man’s suit at the conclusion of the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, the presidency of Franklin Rosevelt, and today.”

Peter A. Burshire

“You know you can’t please everyone so you’ve got to please yourself. ”

As sung by Rick Nelson on “Garden Party “  a 1972 hit song .  It tells of his leaving the stage at Madison Square Garden, because he was being booed for playing his newer, country-tinged music instead of the 1950s-era rock that he had been successful with earlier.

An example of where the rubber meets the road…..

Mickey: “Your nose is broken.”

Rocky: “How does it look?”

Mickey: “Ah, it’s an improvement.”

From the original “Rocky” movie.

More previous quotations:

“The faintest ink is more powerful than the strongest memory” Ancient Chinese Proverb

“Efforts and courage are not enough without purpose and direction”…..John F. Kennedy

Damn the torpedos!  Full speed ahead…..Admiral David Farragut.  August 1864. Lashed to the rigging of his flagship, as he led 18 warships into a spectacular naval battle that captured Mobile Bay.

“Arnie, I’m going to loosen up my girdle and let it fly” …..   Babe Didrikson Zaharias, as told to then 16 year old Arnold Palmer, and Arnie said she did just that.   “She hit it farther than I could believe.”

“Those who do not create the future they want, most endure the future they get.” – Draper L. Kaufman, Jr.

“Our favorite holding period is forever.”  Warren Buffet

“If a man is offered a fact which goes against his instincts, he will scrutinize it closely, and unless the evidence is overwhelming, he will refuse to believe it.  If, on the other hand, he is offered something which affords a reason for acting in accordance to his instincts, he will accept it even on the slightest evidence.”  …….Bertrand Russell

“Never put off until tomorrow what you can do the day after tomorrow.” -Mark Twain

“One of the surest ways of influencing the opinion of another is to give consideration and respect to his or her opinion”…..Dale Carnegie

“Fall seven times,  stand up eight”…..Japanese proverb

“The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them.” -Albert Einstein

“On account of being a democracy and run by the people, we are the only nation in the world that has to keep a government for four years, no matter what it does.” -Will Rogers

‘Tis better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and remove all doubt.” - Abraham Lincoln

“A man with no enemies is a man with no character.” -Paul Newman (1925-2008)

“A huge amount of financial folly is being exposed. You only learn who has been swimming naked when the tide goes out – and what we are witnessing at some of our largest financial institutions is an ugly sight.” Warren Buffet

On the difference between gross profit and net profit: “Pretend you’re fishing. Net is all the fish in your net at the end of the year. Gross is that plus everything that got away.” -Richard Branson

Question: How do you stay level headed in a bubble? Response: I don’t. I panic. I’m given to euphoria and despair. I’m only rich because I know when I’m wrong.” .. George Soros

Almost everything I’ve done I’ve copied from someone else”—Sam Walton

If the power to do hard work is not talent, it is the best possible substitute for it.”– James A. Garfield

Timing has a lot to do with the outcome of a rain dance… George Owens