HCA Healthcare has signed a deal to purchase 41 urgent care centers from FastMed to bolster its existing Texas markets, the hospital chain announced Thursday morning.
Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed, though HCA said it expects to close the deal this summer.
The facilities included in the deal are 19 and 22 locations with the FastMed and MedPost brandings, respectively, according to the announcement. They’re located across the Dallas, Austin, San Antonio, Houston and El Paso areas.
In earnings calls and banking conference appearances, HCA executives have often highlighted Texas as a key region for continued market growth via network development. Specifically, the for-profit has said it is looking to support outpatient sites that can funnel patients into network hospitals and boost volumes.
“The addition of these urgent care centers will improve access to care for patients in the Texas communities we serve,” Erol Akdamar, president of HCA Healthcare’s American Group, said in a statement. “It will provide convenient outpatient care options when and where they need it. It also will help seamlessly connect these patients to our broader healthcare network when a higher level of care or specialty service is needed.
HCA’s Texas presence currently comprises 45 hospitals, 395 physician practices, 92 urgent care centers and “numerous” other locations, according to the announcement. The company has invested roughly $6.6 billion over a half-dozen years to bolster its service offerings in the state, it said, and now provides care to more patients than any other provider in Texas.
Nashville, Tennessee-based HCA’s total operations already include 268 urgent care clinics that support its 180 hospitals or other ambulatory care sites, such as surgery centers or free-standing emergency rooms. The for-profit system reported $60.2 billion in 2022 full-year revenues and $5.64 billion in net income attributable to the company.
HCA more recently reported an above-expectations first quarter with 4.1% year-over-year revenue growth, which prompted the company to increase its projections for the remainder of 2023.
During a subsequent call with investors, executives said they were keen to bolster its markets through a combination of outpatient network development and land acquisition deals so that it could build additional hospitals.
“We believe that’s one of the differentiating attributes of HCA, that we are in great markets that have great growth prospects in and of themselves,” CEO Sam Hazen said during the first-quarter earnings call. “Before we get to share gain possibilities in those markets, that is going to require us to build out some new hospital facilities.”
FastMed, which is based in Raleigh, North Carolina, operates almost 200 clinics in Arizona, Florida, North Carolina and Texas. Should the deal with HCA close, it would represent a total exit from the Lone Star State.