Wolters Kluwer Health announced it will acquire Emmi Solutions (Emmi), a providers of patient engagement solutions, for $170 million in cash to expand its market share in the patient engagement market. For Wolters Kluwer Health, Emmi’s offerings are a natural extension to its existing Clinical Solutions portfolio, in particular to UpToDate in decision support and Lexicomp and Medi-Span in drug information.
Founded in 2002, Emmi offers an enterprise-wide, integrated and multi-media patient engagement platform with high quality, peer-reviewed content and personalized communications that span the spectrum of care from prevention to treatment to patient follow-up. The company’s solutions are highly rated for ease of integration with EMR systems, technical capabilities and overall user experience.
The U.S. market for patient engagement solutions is expected to grow at a double-digit rate in coming years, driven by the ongoing shift from a ‘pay for service’ to a ‘pay for outcome’ reimbursement model. Emmi’s revenues are expected to reach approximately $29 million in 2016, driven by increasing penetration and product innovation. Over 90% of revenues are subscription-based and over 95% is derived from the U.S. market. The acquisition is expected to deliver a return on invested capital above Wolters Kluwer’s after tax cost of capital (8%) in 3 to 5 years and is expected to be enhancing to adjusted earnings in the first full year.
“Healthcare systems are striving to deliver consistent, safe, high-quality care while the economics of healthcare are increasingly demanding value in healthcare delivery. Patients who engage in their care have the potential to make better decisions and achieve improved health outcomes. We are pleased to add this state-of-the-art patient engagement product to our range of clinical solutions. Combining Emmi’s products with our UpToDate and drug information offerings, we can now uniquely provide healthcare systems and their patients a consistent, high quality, evidence-based solution that spans the entire continuum of care,” said Diana Nole, CEO of Wolters Kluwer Health.
