Amedisys is betting the end of government stimulus from the pandemic will help solve the dearth of home care and hospice workers by early next year.
Amedisys Chairman and CEO Paul Kusserow told analysts during an earnings call Thursday the end of enhanced unemployment benefits this fall will force many employees sidelined by COVID-19 back into the workforce. He also predicted other workers will be looking for jobs if smaller agencies go out of business when sequestration takes effect again early next year.
“I think if there is a shake-out, it will mitigate and alleviate to a certain degree the labor pressures, so we are hoping that a big shake-out will create some free agents that potentially we can grab,” Kusserow said.
Despite continued challenges from the pandemic, Amedisys reported a solid second quarter on Wednesday. The Baton Rouge, LA-based home care and hospice firm reported $557.6 million in revenues for the quarter, a 15% increase over the previous year. Adjusted earnings per share were $1.69 compared to $1.34 in the second quarter of 2020.
The company said the continued shortage of home care and home healthcare workers has been especially challenging during the COVID-19 public health emergency.
“The hiring environment out there is very competitive and it’s very difficult,” Amedisys CFO Scott Ginn said. “It’s not only competitive across our industry, but obviously hospitals and other health systems are looking for staff as well. We’re having to get very creative out there in order to build clinical capacity.”
