Option Care Health, Inc. (OPCH)

Option Care Health, Inc. is the largest independent provider of home and alternate site infusion services in the United States, operating a national network of 177 locations in 43 states. It draws on more than 40 years of clinical experience to deliver infusion therapy, including clinical management, nursing support and care coordination, in coordination with and under the direction of each patient's physician. Its team of more than 4,500 clinicians includes pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, nurses and dietitians. The current company resulted from the August 2019 merger of BioScrip, Inc. with the business formerly known as Walgreens Infusion Services, which had been acquired from Walgreen Co. in 2015 and rebranded Option Care. BioScrip was then renamed Option Care Health.

The company operates in one segment, infusion services. It provides medications, supplies, patient education, nursing, clinical monitoring and reimbursement assistance through 93 full-service pharmacies and 84 stand-alone ambulatory infusion suites. Therapies include anti-infectives, nutrition support (parenteral and enteral), immunoglobulin infusion, chronic inflammatory disorders, neurological disorders, bleeding disorders, women's health, heart failure, and others such as pain management, chemotherapy and respiratory medication. Nursing services come from about 2,800 employed nurses plus a network of sub-contracted nursing agencies.

Services are mostly delivered in patients' homes, and also at clinics, physicians' offices or ambulatory infusion suites. The company contracts with managed care organizations, third-party payers, hospitals, physicians, health systems and other referral sources, and works with pharmaceutical manufacturers as a distribution channel for existing drugs and new product launches. Most revenue comes from third-party payers such as managed care organizations, insurers, self-insured employers, Medicare and Medicaid. The largest payer accounted for about 14% of 2023 revenue, and about 12% of revenue was reimbursable directly through government programs. Pharmaceuticals are typically reimbursed at a discount to average wholesale price or a premium to average sales price, and nursing is typically billed separately. Sales and marketing focus on managed care contracts, local and regional referral sources, and manufacturer relationships.

The company buys pharmaceuticals and medical supplies from manufacturers, authorized distributors and group purchasing organizations. In 2023 about 72% of purchases came from four vendors, and some drugs are available only through sole or limited distribution. It competes in a large, fragmented market on quality of care, clinical outcomes, pricing, reputation and reliability. Competitors include Optum Infusion Pharmacy, Coram (CVS Health), Amerita Specialty Pharmacy, KabaFusion, Soleo Health, and many smaller regional and local providers, ambulatory infusion centers and specialty pharmacies. The company holds accreditations from ACHC, PCAB, ASHP and URAC, and is subject to extensive healthcare regulation covering licensure, pharmacy and controlled substances, privacy, and fraud and abuse laws. At December 31, 2023 it employed 5,809 full-time and 1,993 part-time people.