UnitedHealth Group’s (NYSE:UNH) health information technology subsidiary Ingenix will acquire compliance consulting company Executive Health Resources.
Ingenix didn’t disclose the price for the Newton Square, Pa.-based company, but a Bloomberg report last week put the figure at about $1.5 billion.
The deal, which is subject to regulatory approval, fits with UnitedHealth’s strategy of beefing up its service business as its core health insurance business continues to face pressure to hold downs costs. The EHR acquisition marks UnitedHealth‘s fifth acquisition this year of a closely held company outside its insurance unit. Last month, Ingenix reached a deal for health IT firm Picis.
EHR, which has 1,100 U.S. clients, helps hospitals and health systems manage what the company calls “medical-necessity compliance requirements” by ensuring that they have completed the proper documentation to show the medical services they provided to patients was necessary.
Laws require that hospitals and health systems perform compliance reviews for patients covered by Medicare and Medicaid, according to an Ingenix statement.