A Year of Milestones

SimiTree strategists recount major accomplishments in our first year

A merger of industry leaders, a strategic new partnership in behavioral health, a significant expansion of revenue cycle management services and the launch of an innovative new market analytics platform marked a year of milestones for SimiTree.

The post-acute industry leader in solutions for compliance, growth and profitability celebrates its first anniversary on May 18, and SimiTree leaders say the company’s first year has been dynamic, with impressive gains in several areas.

“SimiTree continues to expand the scope and scale of services and solutions, furthering its mission to help post-acute organizations become stronger and healthier overall by aligning business and care,” said Sheridan Capital Partners Principal Chris McCrory. Sheridan is a healthcare-focused private equity firm backing SimiTree.

“We’ve seen some impressive milestones in just the first 12 month,” he said. “SimiTree is providing the best options in the industry, helping its clients address challenges, identify strategic growth opportunities and improve profitability.”

SimiTree was created by the 2021 merger of Simione Healthcare Consultants and BlackTree Healthcare Consulting to provide an array of solutions to home health, hospice, applied behavioral analysis, palliative care, and other post-acute organizations.

The company’s solutions include full revenue cycle management outsourced services, including billing, coding and OASIS review; compliance and risk mitigation; consulting in finance, operations, clinical and technological areas; talent solutions; mergers and acquisitions support; and data analytics.

Year of Data Analytics

Managing Principal David Berman likes to point out that SimiTree’s first year has also been “the year of data analytics,” referring to an industrywide dependence on reliable market intelligence for decisions impacting service delivery models, budgeting, sales and marketing, or strategic growth such as partnerships and expansions.

In response to the need for precision data, SimiTree followed its mission to deliver innovation to the market with helpful and easy-to-use solutions. Data analysts developed MAP, a user-friendly market analytics platform. MAP makes it easier for clients to pinpoint high referral targets, track patient movement between competitors and referral sources, and demonstrate to potential partners the value the agency brings to the relationship.

SimiTree developers took an innovative approach to MAP, creating a platform that delivers easy accessible and clear reports to highlight important observations in an uncomplicated manner. SimiTree also made the platform customizable, so that clients can tailor the experience to a specific project or to their organization’s specific needs.

“We wanted clients to be able to spend their time acting on the data rather than digging through it,” said Christine Lang, SimiTree Director of Data Analytics.

MAP complements other renowned data analytics services from SimiTree, including the industry-leading Financial Monitor, an in-depth benchmarking and financial report available by subscription for home health and hospice agencies. The report provides subscribers real-time benchmarking data in quarterly increments to help clients understand what’s driving reimbursement and impacting their profitability.

Revenue Cycle Powerhouse

One of SimiTree’s most notable areas of expansion in its first year has been a move to cement its position in the behavioral health market. In January, SimiTree announced its acquisition of Infinity Behavioral Health Services, a Florida- and California-based company offering financial management services.

The partnership creates an enterprising powerhouse of advanced solutions for post-acute care solutions in the areas of financial, clinical, and operational resources, including full revenue cycle outsourcing services.

“This acquisition allows both SimiTree and Infinity to fully realize the synergies of working together to improve cash flow, increase collection rates and strengthen the revenue cycle for the benefit of behavioral health agencies,” said SimiTree Managing Principal Mike Freytag.

The acquisition of Miami-based Imark Billing in the same month added impressive depth and experience to SimiTree’s revenue cycle management capabilities, enabling SimiTree to quickly deploy resources to clients of all sizes, from start-up to enterprise.

Unmatched expertise

First-year growth for the new company has augmented capabilities across the full spectrum of consulting, outsourcing, and educational services.

Clients turn to SimiTree for compliance and risk mitigation, clinical management training and unbiased guidance to make technological improvements. SimiTree helps agencies create new workflow efficiencies in a short-staffed environment, improve budgeting capabilities and boost their sales and marketing performance.

Some of the largest transactions in the post-acute industry over the past year relied on SimiTree’s behind-the-scenes mergers and acquisitions support services. The company leads the nation in the number of cost reports prepared for Medicare-certified home health agencies, providing hospice cap reporting and due diligence as well.

SimiTree outsources billing and collections, coding, and OASIS review services, and helps clients manage QAPI programs, handle audits, prepare for surveys or catch up on a backlog of pre-claim reviews.

With so many capabilities in so many areas, SimiTree offers what Managing Principal William Simione III describes as “an amplitude of proficiency,” with unmatched expertise in every area of the industry working together to fortify all post-acute operations for clients.

“We continue to grow the breadth and width of our consulting, adding innovative new solutions and helping our clients align business and care in a way that makes them stronger, healthier and better able to focus on patient needs,” Simione said.

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