BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Optum and The Advisory Board Company (NASDAQ: ABCO), announced today that The Advisory Board Company’s health care business will join Optum.
By bringing together distinctive information and technology solutions with comprehensive data-driven research and advisory capabilities, the combined organization will be better positioned to help its members and clients respond to changing market dynamics and improve the health system for everyone.
For more than three decades, The Advisory Board Company has combined research, technology and consulting to improve the performance of health care organizations. The Advisory Board Company has achieved remarkable success serving more than 4,000 members by driving their growth, advancing care quality, reducing care variation and optimizing their overall performance. Optum will preserve the objectivity and enhance the range, impact and value of The Advisory Board Company’s research for its members while offering a broader range of advisory and technology capacities to enhance the value it delivers to its members.
Optum helps clients deliver better experiences, quality outcomes and reduced costs in five core areas: data analytics, pharmacy care services, population health management, health care delivery and health care operations. The company serves stakeholders throughout the health care system, including more than 300 health plans and four out of every five U.S. hospitals, as well as life sciences companies, employers, governments and consumers.
Robert Musslewhite, CEO of The Advisory Board Company, will continue to lead its health care advisory business.
“Joining Optum will enable us to better serve our members, thanks to Optum’s unmatched data analytics resources, investment capacities and operational experience in delivering large-scale solutions and services to all health care stakeholders,” said Musslewhite. “Our team and I look forward to working with Optum to bring our innovative research capabilities into new, untapped markets.”
“The Advisory Board Company is a strong fit for Optum because they share our mission of making the health care system work better for everyone,” said Larry Renfro, CEO, Optum. “We have great admiration for the talent and experience of The Advisory Board’s team and its leaders, and look forward to working alongside them to help its members and our clients solve their biggest challenges.”
The Board of Directors of The Advisory Board Company unanimously approved the merger agreement and has recommended that its stockholders adopt the merger agreement. The merger is expected to close by the end of 2017 or in early 2018 and is contingent on the approval of The Advisory Board Company’s stockholders and the satisfaction or waiver of certain other closing conditions, including U.S. antitrust clearance and the closing of the sale of The Advisory Board Company’s education business.
The transaction is expected to be neutral to UnitedHealth Group’s earnings per share in the first year. For transaction details, please see The Advisory Board Company news release at http://investors.advisoryboardcompany.com/press-releases.
About The Advisory Board Company Health Care Business
Headquartered in Washington, D.C., with offices worldwide, Advisory Board, the health care business of The Advisory Board Company, is a best practices firm that uses a combination of research, technology and consulting to improve the performance of more than 4,400 health care organizations. For more information, visit www.advisory.com.
About Optum
Optum is a leading information and technology-enabled health services business dedicated to helping make the health system work better for everyone. With more than 133,000 people worldwide, Optum delivers intelligent, integrated solutions that help to modernize the health system and improve overall population health. Optum is part of UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH). For more information, visit www.optum.com.
