A Medical Device Daily

Celera (Alameda, California) reported completing the acquisition of Berkeley HeartLab (BHL; Burlingame, California) for about $195 million in cash. The deal was initially disclosed last month (Medical Device Daily, Sept. 5, 2007).

BHL is a cardiovascular healthcare company with a portfolio of CLIA-certified tests and disease management services focused on the secondary prevention market. It has about 300 employees including 110 laboratory personnel and about 80 field-based sales representatives and clinical educators. It will operate as a business unit of Celera.

Kathy Ordoñez, president of Celera, said, "We're excited by the opportunities for sales growth from the existing product portfolio, as well as the development of potential new products around our emerging new molecular diagnostic tests that predict risk and individualize treatment in cardiovascular disease."

Celera said it believes the acquisition will be accretive to earnings in the second half of FY08, excluding the impact of acquisition-related intangible amortization and transaction and integration expenses. The anticipated accretion will be included in Celera's outlook for FY08 when the business presents its first quarter FY08 earnings results.

BHL operates a 40,000 square foot CLIA-certified testing laboratory in Alameda, California, and has eight regional disease management centers which anchor its 4MyHeart cardiovascular disease management program.

Celera is the molecular diagnostics business of Applera (Norwalk, Connecticut).

Apria Healthcare Group (Lake Forest, California) reported entering into an agreement to acquire Coram (Denver), a private national provider of home infusion and specialty pharmaceutical services, for $350 million in cash.

The transaction is conditioned upon obtaining customary approvals closing conditions. Apria said it anticipates closing the acquisition, following satisfaction of these conditions, as early as mid-November.

The company said the acquisition will expand its services by creating the leading, nationwide home infusion provider. The two organizations care for more than 100,000 patients annually and together are licensed to serve patients in all 50 states. The company said the transaction also enables it to immediately enter the specialty pharmaceutical market, while expanding existing managed care relationships associated with its respiratory/home medical equipment business.

"This is a transformative event for Apria Healthcare," said Lawrence Higby, CEO of Apria. "The transaction supports our strategy of diversifying our service offering by adding and expanding complementary product lines that fit well with our core competencies. In addition, this expansion makes Apria significantly less reliant on government reimbursement policies, since government payors will represent a smaller percentage of our overall business.

Coram, with about 2,100 employees, provides home infusion therapies to more than 65,000 patients through a network of more than 70 branches across the country and 50 company-owned and operated ambulatory infusion suites.

John Arlotta, president/CEO of Coram, said that the company's management team will continue to lead Coram's operations after the merger and coordinate the integration of the companies' infusion businesses.

Apria said it expects Coram to generate 2008 revenue pf about $500 million. Apria estimates that the transaction will be dilutive to net after-tax earnings by $3.5 million to $5.5 million in 2008 and accretive to 2009 net after-tax earnings by $5 million to $6 million.

Apria was advised on the transaction by Credit Suisse Securities (USA), and Coram was advised by MTS Health Partners.

Apria provides home respiratory therapy, home infusion therapy and home medical equipment through about 500 U.S. locations.