Private equity investment in health care delivery, Australia, 2008-2022.

OBJECTIVES: To examine the scale of private equity investment in Australian health care delivery assets (clinics, hospitals, imaging facilities, other doctor-led health care services). STUDY DESIGN, SETTING: Extraction of information about private equity acquisitions of hospitals, clinics, imaging centres and in vitro fertilisation facilities in Australia, 2008-2022, from a commercial database (PitchBook), supplemented by information from publicly available online media sources. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Number and value of private equity acquisitions of health care assets, 2008-2022; numbers of clinic parent company and clinic acquisitions, 2017-2022. RESULTS: A total of 75 private equity acquisitions of health care delivery assets in Australia during 2008-2022 were identified; the annual number rose from three acquisitions in 2008 to eighteen in 2022. During 2008-2010, five of seven acquisitions were of in vitro fertilisation providers; during 2020-2022, 22 of 39 acquisitions were of clinics or clinic groups, including eleven of eighteen in 2022. The total value of the 39 acquisitions for which purchase price could be ascertained (52%) was $24.1 billion. During 2017-2022, the clinic specialty with the greatest number of private equity acquisitions was general practice (256 of 446 clinics purchased within acquisitions). Seven companies owning ophthalmology clinics (24 clinics) were acquired by private equity. Four private equity acquisitions during 2017-2022 included 60 oncology clinics, all related to a single clinic group. CONCLUSIONS: The number of private equity acquisitions of Australian health care delivery assets increased during 2008-2022. Doctors should be aware of the motivations and dynamics of private equity companies, as they are increasingly likely to interact with these firms and assets owned by these firms.

Contribution of Common Infections to Cardiovascular risk in HIV Positive Individuals.

HIV-positive individuals are at increased risk for cardiovascular disease due to complex interactions between the increased incidence of traditional cardiovascular risk factors and HIV and antiretroviral-associated inflammation and dyslipidemia. Increasing evidence suggests that a number of important co-pathogens, including cytomegalovirus, hepatitis C virus, and periodontal disease, are likely to also be contributing. Mechanisms such as molecular mimicry and modification of lipids play a role; however, induction of systemic inflammation is the likely key pathogenic link by which this occurs. Treatments to reduce the presence of infection, such as antibiotics, antivirals, or dental hygiene, show potential as modifiers of cardiovascular risk in HIV-positive individuals. This review will discuss the evidence regarding the contribution of these key co-pathogens, Chlamydia pneumoniae, cytomegalovirus, and hepatitis C virus, to cardiovascular risk in HIV-positive individuals. It will also review the roles that inflammation, microbial translocation, and periodontal infection play in promoting cardiovascular disease. The potential cardiovascular benefits of treating these infections with antimicrobials (such as valganciclovir) or improvements in dental hygiene (in the setting of periodontal disease) will be explored. As the life expectancy of HIV-positive individuals increases and the HIV-positive population thus ages, reducing the impact of age-related comorbidities, and particularly cardiovascular disease, will be of increasing importance at both an individual and population level.