Investor Spotlight: Kindred Healthcare

Tell us about Kindred’s roots to Louisville.  

Kindred has been headquartered in Louisville since the Company’s founding in 1985. While we have expanded across the country, we feel a strong connection to Louisville. We are proud to be one of many organizations in Louisville that is committed to forging new and unique solutions to the healthcare challenges in America, and making Louisville the epicenter of aging services in the country.   

How did Kindred come into existence?

The Company was named Kindred Healthcare after reorganizing in 2001. Over the next decade, as a publicly-traded company, Kindred established itself as a leader in post-acute care, and embedded a culture of innovation, quality and compliance across the organization. From 2010 to 2017, Kindred grew through acquisitions of competitors including RehabCare, Gentiva Health Services and Centerre, which positioned Kindred to transform the post-acute care industry and serve patients across the care continuum. In 2018, Kindred became the Company it is today through a transformative transaction that created two separate, privately held companies – specialty hospital company Kindred Healthcare and home healthcare company Kindred at Home – in addition to refinancing our balance sheet and strengthening our financial structure.

What is one thing you wish others knew about your company?

Our long term care hospitals, acute inpatient rehabilitation and behavioral health services are compliant with acute care hospital regulations and Medicare health and safety requirements– a significantly higher standard than all other post-acute care. As a specialty hospital and rehabilitation leader, Kindred’s expert multidisciplinary medical, rehabilitation and behavioral health teams deliver quality care and optimal outcomes to the most medically-complex, difficult to treat patients —the 10% of patients who consume upwards of 50% of healthcare costs and who otherwise fall through the gaps in our disjointed healthcare system. We seek to improve quality of care and quality of life, prevent hospitalizations and lower overall healthcare costs.

What makes your company different from competitors? 

Kindred has prioritized strong partnerships to ensure a continuity of care for patients and expand our reach beyond our care settings. Today, Kindred has more than 100 partnerships with leading healthcare systems around the country. We have opened six joint venture inpatient rehabilitation facilities (IRFs) since 2018, and have a robust pipeline of future strategic development. Kindred also partners with companies, organizations and universities to develop innovative solutions that meet the unique needs of our patients and the aging population.

Have you had to pivot strategies over the years?

Kindred has a proven record of transforming our company ahead of trends in the healthcare industry – from our patient-centered care model to acquisitions and divestitures. The Company was founded to provide specialized care for patients with medically complex long-term care needs and while our priorities have not changed, Kindred has continually evolved to best deliver on that promise.

For example, Kindred’s acquisition of RehabCare in 2011 made the Company the largest rehabilitation provider in the United States, and the acquisition of Gentiva in 2015 made Kindred the country’s largest provider of Home Health and Hospice. In 2017, Kindred completed the divestiture of one of the largest skilled nursing facility platforms, completely exiting the skilled nursing industry. And in 2018, the Company completed the go-private transaction that created the specialty hospital company we are today.

Since then, we have extended our legacy of innovation and intentional disruption, leveraging strategic partnerships and our expertise in driving quality outcomes at a lower cost – and in a compassionate way – to best serve critically chronically ill and rehab intensive patients.

The work we do is more important than ever. There are approximately 52 million Americans who are 65 or older, and seniors are the fastest growing demographic in the nation. Nearly 11,000 Americans become Medicare-eligible each day. That means in less than 15 years we will have more citizens who are 65 or older than are 18 or younger. In addition, more than 80% of Americans who are 65 or older have multiple chronic conditions, and those patients cost up to seven times more to care for than patients with only one chronic condition. As demand is surging, our country is facing a shortage of healthcare workers.

As an industry leader focused on caring for the most medically complex and rehab-intensive patients in the country, Kindred is well positioned to meet this moment and be part of the solution.

What makes Louisville a good home for your company?

Kindred is proud to be part of a community of aging services companies that are partnering to develop innovative solutions to healthcare challenges and attract the leadership and workforce to stand out among peer cities.

The Louisville Healthcare CEO Council is a great example of this collaboration. The CEOs on the LHCC lead companies that collectively represent over 400,000 employees and $100 billion in revenue. The LHCC has forged a number of partnerships that have created jobs, spurred innovation, and increased investment in Louisville’s healthcare economy. And the Health Enterprises Network allows healthcare organizations and leaders to collaborate and help support and grow healthcare companies throughout the region.

In another example, in 2017, Kindred and the University of Louisville (U of L) formed HIVE, through which Kindred team members work with students and faculty from UofL’s J.B. Speed School of Engineering to develop healthcare technology solutions that improve the health and lives of seniors. HIVE has enabled us to create valuable intellectual property that supports Kindred’s mission – including Kindred’s first mobile compliance tracking app – and provide unique professional experiences for students, creating a pathway for their future employment, including in some cases with Kindred. In September 2019, Kindred extended the initiative to Louisville high schools through the creation of Honeycomb with the Jefferson County Public Schools, the Kindred Foundation and several of Kindred’s technology partners.

We are witnessing firsthand how new partnership models help drive innovative collaboration and generate new and unique solutions to healthcare in America, and how new financial investments drive technologies and consumer-driven healthcare applications. This environment is attracting start-ups and specialized talent, strengthening our workforce, creating new and exciting economic development in Louisville and making our city a force now and in the future.

How is the Kindred Foundation partnering with local advocacy groups? 

Through its Foundation, Kindred has supported organizations that are researching and addressing the medical conditions that impact Kindred’s patients. Kindred has developed especially strong partnerships with the American Lung Association, and the American Heart Association.

In 2020, Kindred designated $1 million to create the Kindred Institute of Inclusion and Equity to support not-for-profit organizations across the nation that seek to engage and empower individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds. This direct investment in our communities will help support causes related to healthcare disparities, gaps in the education system and social services in the cities where our team members live and work.

Kindred supports a numerous of Louisville area organizations and fundraising events, including Greater Louisville Inc. In addition, Kindred was a founding member of the Louisville Healthcare CEO Council and has provided financial support and other assistance. In 2020, recognizing the challenges due to COVID-19, the Kindred Foundation made a $50,000 donation to the Community Foundation of Louisville’s COVID-19 response fund.