BREMERTON — At least three rehabilitation centers in Kitsap County are, or soon will be, under new ownership.
Bremerton Health & Rehabilitation and Forest Ridge Health & Rehabilitation, also in Bremerton, are being sold by Extendicare to Formation Capital, LLC, a healthcare-focused private investment firm and an affiliate of Safanad Inc., a global principal investment firm.
That’s according to Heather Tate, marketing and communication manager for Extendicare. She said the sale is expected to be finalized later this month. Bremerton Rehab has 125 beds and Forest Ridge has 98 beds. Formation Capital is also buying Extendicare’s Crestwood Health and Rehab in Port Angeles and Sequim Health and Rehab.
In addition, Extendicare’s Island Health & Rehabilitation Center on Bainbridge Island is part of a pending sale to Ensign, a California-based company, which owns and operates rehabilitation centers and skilled nursing facilities. Extendicare’s Evergreen Nursing & Rehabilitation Center in Olympia is also being sold to Ensign.
“There is expected to be no impact to employees or residents at either of these facilities,” Tate said March 5. Formation Capital declined comment until the sale is completed, but employees at both Bremerton facilities said they were aware that the sale is pending.
Tate said there is another, larger sale in process which includes an agreement to sell all of Extendicare’s other U.S. health care facilities to Formation Capital. According to a press release from Extendicare, the price of that sale, including the Bremerton sites, is $870 million. That sale is expected to be completed by the end of March.
“After an extensive strategic review process, and months of negotiating and deal structuring, we are pleased to have reached an agreement to sell our U.S. business,” said Tim Lukenda, president and CEO of Entendicare. “This transaction realizes our stated objective of separating our U.S. and Canadian businesses. Importantly, this transaction generates substantial cash proceeds that accelerate our vision to further grow our Canadian business and expand our service offering.”
As of Sept. 30, 2014, Extendicare’s U.S. senior care portfolio was composed of 141 owned and operated senior care centers, four centers operated under lease arrangements, 10 centers operated under managed contracts, and 21 centers in Kentucky leased to a third-party operator.
In late 2014, Extendicare officials said they were retaining 10 of the U.S. skilled nursing centers, which will be sold at a later date.
Island Health & Rehabilitation, 835 Madison Ave., has served Kitsap County since 1971. A spokesman there said that notification of new ownership has been sent by letter to all employees and residents, and families of residents. He said they expect no changes in their day-to-day operations, however, it had been announced that there would be a name change at the facility to Eagle Harbor Health Care.
Island Health & Rehabilitation Center was ranked as one of U.S. News and World Report’s Best Nursing Homes of 2014. The 69-bed facility offers skilled nursing care and short-term rehabilitation solutions with a full continuum of services and care.
Calls to Ensign Health Services in Mission Viejo, California, to confirm details of the sell, were not returned on March .
Formation Capital, LLC, based in Alpharetta, Georgia, is a leading private investment management firm focused on equity and debt healthcare investment opportunities. Since 1999, Formation Capital and its investors have invested more than $5.5 billion in senior housing and care, post-acute services and healthcare real estate.
Its website states they have more than 60,000 beds in 35 states. This would be their first acquisition in Washington state.
