UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 10-K
(Mark One)
| ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 | |||||
For the fiscal year ended December 31 , 2022
OR
| TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 | |||||
For transition period from to
Commission File Number 001-39439
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization) | (I.R.S. Employer Identification Number) | |||||||
(630 ) 296-2223
(Address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of registrant’s principal executive offices)
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
| Title of each class | Trading Symbol | Name of each exchange on which registered | ||||||||||||
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: NONE
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes ☐ No ☒
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes ☐ No ☒
Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant: (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the Registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ☒ No ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the Registrant was required to submit such files). Yes ☒ No ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
| Large accelerated filer | ☐ | ☒ | |||||||||
| Non-accelerated filer | ☐ | Smaller reporting company | |||||||||
| Emerging growth company | |||||||||||
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. ☒
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act): Yes ☐ No ☒
The aggregate market value of the common stock held by non-affiliates of the registrant at June 30, 2022, based on the closing sale price reported on the NYSE on June 30, 2022, was approximately $147.4 million.
As of March 6, 2023, there were approximately 207,384,260 shares of the registrant's common stock legally outstanding.
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Table of Contents
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CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
Certain statements included in this Form 10-K that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements for purposes of the safe harbor provisions under the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements may be identified by the use of the words such as “believe,” “may,” “will,” “estimate,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “expect,” “should,” “would,” “plan,” “project,” “forecast,” “predict,” “potential,” “seem,” “seek,” “future,” “outlook,” “target” or similar expressions that predict or indicate future events or trends or that are not statements of historical matters. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the impact of physical therapist attrition and ability to achieve and maintain clinical staffing levels and clinician productivity, anticipated visit and referral volumes and other factors on the Company's overall profitability, and estimates and forecasts of other financial and performance metrics and projections of market opportunity. These statements are based on various assumptions, whether or not identified in this Form 10-K, and on the current expectations of the Company’s management and are not predictions of actual performance. These forward-looking statements are provided for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to serve as, and must not be relied on by any investor as, a guarantee, an assurance, a prediction or a definitive statement of fact or probability. Actual events and circumstances are difficult or impossible to predict and will differ from assumptions. Many actual events and circumstances are beyond the control of the Company.
These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including:
•our liquidity position raises substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern;
•risks associated with liquidity and capital markets, including the Company's ability to generate sufficient cash flows, together with cash on hand, to run its business, cover liquidity and capital requirements and resolve substantial doubt about the Company's ability to continue as a going concern;
•our ability to meet certain financial covenants as required by our 2022 Credit Agreement, including maintaining $30.0 million of minimum liquidity;
•risks related to outstanding indebtedness and preferred stock, rising interest rates and potential increases in borrowing costs, compliance with associated covenants and provisions and the potential need to seek additional or alternative debt or capital financing in the future;
•risks related to the Company's ability to access additional financing or alternative options when needed;
•our dependence upon governmental and third-party private payors for reimbursement and that decreases in reimbursement rates, renegotiation or termination of payor contracts or unfavorable changes in payor, state and service mix may adversely affect our financial results;
•federal and state governments’ continued efforts to contain growth in Medicaid expenditures, which could adversely affect the Company’s revenue and profitability;
•payments that we receive from Medicare and Medicaid being subject to potential retroactive reduction;
•changes in Medicare rules and guidelines and reimbursement or failure of our clinics to maintain their Medicare certification and/or enrollment status;
•compliance with federal and state laws and regulations relating to the privacy of individually identifiable patient information, and associated fines and penalties for failure to comply;
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•risks associated with public health crises, including COVID-19 (and any existing and future variants) and its direct and indirect impacts on the business, which could lead to a decline in visit volumes and referrals;
•risks related to the impact on our workforce of mandatory COVID-19 vaccination of employees;
•our inability to compete effectively in a competitive industry, subject to rapid technological change and cost inflation, including competition that could impact our effectiveness of strategies to improve patient referrals and our ability to identify, recruit and retain skilled physical therapists;
•our inability to maintain high levels of service and patient satisfaction;
•risks associated with the locations of our clinics, including the economies in which we operate, size and expected growth of our addressable markets, and the potential need to close clinics and incur closure costs;
•our dependence upon the cultivation and maintenance of relationships with customers, suppliers, physicians and other referral sources;
•the severity of climate change or the weather and natural disasters that can occur in the regions of the U.S. in which we operate, which could cause disruption to our business;
•risks associated with future acquisitions, which may use significant resources, may be unsuccessful and could expose us to unforeseen liabilities;
•failure of third-party vendors, including customer service, technical and IT support providers and other outsourced professional service providers to adequately address customers’ requests and meet Company requirements;
•risks associated with our reliance on IT infrastructure in critical areas of our operations including, but not limited to, cyber and other security threats;
•a security breach of our IT systems or our third-party vendors’ IT systems may subject us to potential legal action and reputational harm and may result in a violation of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 or the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act;
•maintaining clients for which we perform management and other services, as a breach or termination of those contractual arrangements by such clients could cause operating results to be less than expected;
•our failure to maintain financial controls and processes over billing and collections or disputes with third-parties could have a significant negative impact on our financial condition and results of operations;
•our operations are subject to extensive regulation and macroeconomic uncertainty;
•our ability to meet revenue and earnings expectations;
•risks associated with applicable state laws regarding fee-splitting and professional corporation laws;
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•inspections, reviews, audits and investigations under federal and state government programs and payor contracts that could have adverse findings that may negatively affect our business, including our results of operations, liquidity, financial condition and reputation;
•changes in or our failure to comply with existing federal and state laws or regulations or the inability to comply with new government regulations on a timely basis;
•the outcome of any legal and regulatory matters, proceedings or investigations instituted against us or any of our directors or officers, and whether insurance coverage will be available and/or adequate to cover such matters or proceedings;
•our facilities face competition for experienced physical therapists and other clinical providers that may increase labor costs and reduce profitability;
•risks associated with our ability to attract and retain talented executives and employees amidst the impact of unfavorable labor market dynamics and wage inflation, including potential failure of steps being taken to reduce attrition of physical therapists and increase hiring of physical therapists;
•risk resulting from the IPO Warrants, Earnout Shares and Vesting Shares being accounted for as liabilities;
•further impairments of goodwill and other intangible assets, which represent a significant portion of our total assets, especially in view of the Company’s recent market valuation;
•our inability to remediate the material weaknesses in internal control over financial reporting related to income taxes and to maintain effective internal control over financial reporting;
•costs related to operating as a public company; and
•risks associated with our ability to regain and sustain compliance with the listing requirements of our securities on the New York Stock Exchange ("NYSE").
If any of these risks materialize or our assumptions prove incorrect, actual results could differ materially from the results implied by these forward-looking statements.
These and other factors that could cause actual results to differ from those implied by the forward-looking statements in this Form 10-K are more fully described under the heading “Item 1A. Risk Factors” and elsewhere in this Form 10-K. The risks described under the heading “Item 1A. Risk Factors” are not exhaustive. Other sections of this Form 10-K describe additional factors that could adversely affect the business, financial condition or results of operations of the Company. New risk factors emerge from time to time and it is not possible to predict all such risk factors, nor can the Company assess the impact of all such risk factors on the business of the Company or the extent to which any factor or combination of factors may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements attributable to the Company or persons acting on its behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by the foregoing cautionary statements. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligations to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements after the date they are made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.
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In addition, statements of belief and similar statements reflect the beliefs and opinions of the Company on the relevant subject. These statements are based upon information available to the Company, as applicable, as of the date of this Form 10-K, and while the Company believes such information forms a reasonable basis for such statements, such information may be limited or incomplete, and statements should not be read to indicate that the Company has conducted an exhaustive inquiry into, or review of, all potentially available relevant information. These statements are inherently uncertain and you are cautioned not to unduly rely upon these statements.
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PART I
Item 1. Business
Overview
ATI Physical Therapy, Inc. and its subsidiaries (herein referred to as "we," "us," "our," "the Company" or "ATI") is a nationally recognized outpatient physical therapy provider in the United States specializing in outpatient rehabilitation and adjacent healthcare services, with 923 clinics (as well as 20 clinics under management service agreements) located in 25 states as of December 31, 2022. We operate with a commitment to providing our patients, medical provider partners, payors and employers with evidence-based, patient-centric care.
We offer a variety of services within our clinics, including physical therapy to treat spine, shoulder, knee and neck injuries or pain; work injury rehabilitation services, including work conditioning and work hardening; hand therapy; and other specialized treatment services. Our Company's team of professionals is dedicated to helping return patients to optimal physical health.
Physical therapy patients receive team-based care, standardized techniques and individualized treatment plans in an encouraging environment. To achieve optimal results, we use an extensive array of techniques including therapeutic exercise, manual therapy and strength training, among others. Our physical therapy model aims to deliver optimized outcomes and time to recovery for patients, insights and service satisfaction for referring providers and predictable costs and measurable value for payors.
In addition to providing services to physical therapy patients at outpatient rehabilitation clinics, we provide services through our ATI Worksite Solutions ("AWS") program, Management Service Agreements ("MSA"), and Sports Medicine arrangements. AWS provides an on-site team of healthcare professionals at employer worksites to promote work-related injury prevention, facilitate expedient and appropriate return-to-work follow-up and maintain the health and well-being of the workforce. Our MSA arrangements typically include the Company providing management and physical therapy-related services to physician-owned physical therapy clinics. Sports Medicine arrangements provide certified healthcare professionals to various schools, universities and other institutions to perform on-site physical therapy and rehabilitation services.
Our mission is to exceed the expectations of the hundreds of thousands of patients we serve each year by providing high quality of care in a friendly and encouraging environment.
Our strategy includes:
•Exceeding customer expectations and providing the right care at the right place at the right time;
•Building new and strengthening existing relationships with referral sources, payors and employees; and
•Allocating available capital to support initiatives and business plans.
Recent Developments
On April 28, 2022, the Company appointed Sharon Vitti as its Chief Executive Officer and to the Board of Directors. Ms. Vitti has 30 years of healthcare experience, including nearly two decades of executive leadership in clinical and consumer-focused healthcare companies.
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On February 24, 2022, the Company entered into various financing arrangements to refinance its existing long-term debt (the "2022 Debt Refinancing"). The Company entered into a new 2022 Credit Agreement which is comprised of a senior secured term loan which matures on February 24, 2028, and a "super priority" senior secured revolver, which matures on February 24, 2027. In connection with the 2022 Debt Refinancing, the Company issued shares of non-convertible preferred stock and warrants to purchase shares of the Company's common stock.
On June 16, 2021 (the “Closing Date”), a Business Combination transaction (the “Business Combination”) was finalized pursuant to the Agreement and Plan of Merger ("Merger Agreement"), dated February 21, 2021 between the operating company, Wilco Holdco, Inc. (“Wilco Holdco”), and Fortress Value Acquisition Corp. II (herein referred to as "FAII" and "FVAC"), a special purpose acquisition company. In connection with the closing of the Business Combination, the Company changed its name from Fortress Value Acquisition Corp. II to ATI Physical Therapy, Inc. The Business Combination was accounted for as a reverse recapitalization in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP"). The Company’s common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange ("NYSE") under the symbol “ATIP.”
This description of our business should be read in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and the related notes contained in Part II, Item 8 in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
Transaction Support Agreement
On March 15, 2023, the Company entered into a Transaction Support Agreement (the “TSA”) with certain of its first lien lenders under the 2022 Credit Agreement (the "First Lien Lenders"), the administrative agent under the 2022 Credit Agreement, holders of its Series A Senior Preferred Stock (the "Preferred Equityholders") and holders of the majority of its common stock (together with the First Lien Lenders and the Preferred Equityholders, the “Parties”), setting forth the principal terms of a comprehensive transaction to enhance the Company's liquidity (the "Transaction"). Pursuant to the TSA, and subject to the terms and conditions thereof, the Parties have agreed to support, act in good faith and take all steps reasonably necessary and desirable to consummate the transactions referenced therein by June 15, 2023 (the “Outside Closing Date”).
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The TSA contemplates, among other things, (i) a delayed draw new money financing, available under certain circumstances until the 18 month anniversary of the closing date of the transactions, in an aggregate principal amount equal to $25.0 million in the form of new second lien PIK exchangeable notes (“Second Lien PIK Exchangeable Notes”), (ii) exchange of $100.0 million of the aggregate principal amount of the term loans under the 2022 Credit Facility held by certain of the Preferred Equityholders for Second Lien PIK Exchangeable Notes, (iii) a reduction of the thresholds applicable to the minimum liquidity financial covenant under the 2022 Credit Agreement for certain periods, (iv) a waiver of the requirement to comply with the Secured Net Leverage Ratio financial covenant under the 2022 Credit Agreement for the fiscal quarters ending June 30, 2024, September 30, 2024 and December 31, 2024 and a modification of the levels and certain component definitions applicable thereto in the fiscal quarters ending after December 31, 2024, (v) waiver of the requirement for the Company to deliver audited financial statements without certain going concern qualifications for the years ended December 31, 2022, December 31, 2023, and December 31, 2024, (vi) an increase in the interest rate payable on the existing term loans and revolving loans until the achievement of a specified financial metric and (vii) board representation and observer rights, and other changes to the governance of the Company. The Second Lien PIK Exchangeable Notes would be exchangeable for shares of Class A common stock of the Company at a fixed price of $0.25, and the holders thereof would have the right to vote on corporate matters on an as-exchanged basis. The TSA contains certain representations, warranties and other agreements by the Company and Parties. In accordance with the TSA, the First Lien Lenders agreed that, prior to the Outside Closing Date, they will forbear in the exercise of any rights, remedies, powers, privileges and defenses under the 2022 Credit Agreement arising on account of an alleged default or event of default (if any) resulting from the going concern explanatory paragraph in the independent auditors' report accompanying the consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2022 (the "Credit Agreement Forbearance"). The Parties' obligations under the TSA are, and the closing of the Transaction is, subject to various customary terms and conditions set forth therein, including the execution and delivery of definitive documentation and approval by the Company's stockholders.
There is no assurance that the transactions contemplated by the TSA will be consummated on the terms as described above, on a timely basis or at all.
Our Operating Model
We operate under a single "ATI" brand and own the operations of nearly all of our clinics, which we believe enables us to more consistently align the clinical and patient experience, align incentives across our teams, track and analyze clinical outcome data, and promote efficiency in our operations. The key components of our operating model include:
•Patients. We are highly focused on providing the best possible patient experience. In our clinics, we strive to maintain a consistently positive look, feel and experience. Additionally, we aim to deliver functional outcomes that meet or exceed national physical therapy industry outcomes across all body regions, which enables patients to return to their normal activities. We are proud of our average Net Promoter Score (“NPS”) of 75 and our average Google Review rating of 4.9 stars across our clinics over the trailing four quarters as of December 31, 2022. We believe these metrics are indicative of our patients’ overall satisfaction with our services and the ATI brand.
•Medical Provider Partners. We believe our medical provider partners also benefit from our customer-driven culture, expansive patient outcomes database, and case management approach, which facilitate end-to-end patient care with musculoskeletal ("MSK") issues. Our proprietary electronic medical records ("EMR") system includes a variety of custom tools and analytics to evaluate patient performance, providing medical partner providers with simple, intuitive reports on shared patients regarding functional outcomes and performance. These scorecards are used to drive continuous quality improvement and deliver more predictable results.
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•Payors. We derive revenue from a diverse range of payor sources, including commercial health plans, government programs (i.e., Medicare and Medicaid), workers’ compensation insurance and auto/personal injury insurance. We believe we offer value to payors not only through quality outcomes that may reduce downstream costs, but also through our national footprint, convenient locations and high customer ratings, which help ensure patients are satisfied with their plan offerings and benefits.
Our Platform
Key elements of our platform include:
•Our People. Our business strategy relies on attracting, training, developing and retaining a skilled workforce. We experienced elevated levels of attrition during periods of 2021 and 2022 and have taken actions in an effort to improve hiring and attrition levels. While we observed improvement in hiring and attrition levels since implementing these actions in 2021, attrition remained above historical levels during periods of 2022 due to a continued tight labor market for available physical therapy and other healthcare providers in the workforce. We operate on a team-based approach that works to match physical therapists, physical therapy assistants and operational support specialists with patients based on acuity to ensure patients can be seen in a timely fashion and in compliance with healthcare laws and regulations and licensure requirements. Our employees' success is measured primarily by patient outcomes and customer satisfaction. We have invested in clinical and leadership development programs offering our clinical and support staff opportunities to enhance their clinical skills and take on increasing leadership responsibilities. Combined with a competitive compensation model, we strive to be an attractive employer in the physical therapy industry.
•Our Clinical Systems & Data. Our proprietary, internally developed EMR platform supports our clinical workflows and leverages our database of more than two and half million unique patient cases as well as peer-reviewed best practices guidelines and care protocols to maximize outcomes for our patients. Our EMR is purpose-built for physical therapy and has diagnosis-specific guidelines in place covering the majority of our patient cases. Our clinical systems and data enhance our ability to effectively manage, deliver and track patient outcomes.
•Our Technology-Enabled Infrastructure. We strive to incorporate data and analytics into the ongoing management of our operations, including monitoring operating performance metrics at various levels. We continually evaluate our technology and tools to determine how best our tools can support the business.
Our Services
Physical Therapy
We offer a variety of services within our clinics, including physical therapy to treat spine, shoulder, knee and neck injuries or pain; work injury rehabilitation services, including work conditioning and work hardening; hand therapy; and other specialized treatment services.
To supplement our traditional outpatient physical therapy services, we introduced a tele-physical therapy offering in early 2020, amidst state lockdowns nationwide in response to COVID-19 (as defined below). We believe that, while virtual visits will not fully replace the need for in-person treatment, our tele-physical therapy offering serves as a convenient option for patients who either lack immediate access to a clinic or are looking to supplement traditional treatments. This offering also allows us to serve patients in locations where we do not have a physical presence today.
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ATI Worksite Solutions ("AWS")
AWS is an on-site service that provides customized cost-saving injury prevention programs, work-related injury assessment services, wellness offerings and consultations for employers, ranging from Fortune 100 companies to small local businesses. We staff athletic trainers, physical therapy assistants and other clinicians as Early Intervention Specialists at the employer's site to provide early interventions and promote physical health and wellness.
Management Service Agreements ("MSA")
We partner with physician-owned practices to improve their performance, drive efficiencies and optimize patient outcomes. Utilizing our resources and infrastructure, we provide dedicated service teams to oversee the integration of our programs into physical therapy practices. This includes proprietary EMR integration, caseload management and continuing education in therapy treatments.
Sports Medicine
Our Sports Medicine athletic trainers work with athletes at all levels of competition to prevent, evaluate and treat sports injuries. We offer on-site sports physical therapy services, clinical evaluation and diagnosis, immediate and emergency care, nutrition programs and concussion management, among others.
Industry Factors and Competition
MSK conditions affect individuals of all ages and represent some of the most common causes of health problems in the United States. Physical therapy and related services are low-cost solutions that can address a variety of MSK conditions. We believe that the following factors, among others, affect the market and industry trends for outpatient physical therapy services:
•Outpatient physical therapy services growth. Outpatient physical therapy continues to play a key role in treating musculoskeletal conditions for patients. According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services ("CMS"), musculoskeletal conditions impact individuals of all ages and include some of the most common health issues in the U.S. As healthcare trends in the U.S. continue to evolve, with a growing focus on value-based care emphasizing up-front, conservative care to deliver better outcomes, quality healthcare services addressing such conditions in lower cost outpatient settings may continue increasing in prevalence.
•U.S. population demographics. The population of adults aged 65 and older in the U.S. is expected to continue to grow and thus expand the Company's market opportunity. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the population of adults over the age of 65 is expected to grow 30% from 2020 through 2030.
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•Federal funding for Medicare and Medicaid. Federal and state funding of Medicare and Medicaid and the terms of access to these reimbursement programs affect demand for physical therapy services. In recent years, through legislative and regulatory actions, the federal government has made substantial changes to various payment systems under the Medicare program. Beginning in January 2022, the physical therapy industry observed a reduction of Medicare reimbursement rates of approximately 0.75%, as well as a 15% decrease in payments for services performed by physical therapy assistants. Additionally, a further reduction through resuming sequestration was postponed. Sequestration reductions resumed at 1% after March 31, 2022, and by an additional 1% after June 30, 2022, which resulted in an overall reduction of 2% in reimbursement rates related to sequestration after June 30, 2022. In July 2022, the CMS released its proposed 2023 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule, which called for an approximate 4.5% reduction in the calendar year 2023 conversion factor. In December 2022, the Consolidated Appropriations Act (2023) was signed into law. The Consolidated Appropriations Act (2023) provides partial relief related to Medicare cuts including 2.5% relief in 2023 and 1.25% relief in 2024. As a result, the reimbursement rate reduction beginning in January 2023 was approximately 2.0%.
•Workers' compensation funding. Payments received under certain workers' compensation arrangements may be based on predetermined state fee schedules, which may be impacted by changes in state funding.
•Number of people with private health insurance. Physical therapy services are often covered by private health insurance. Individuals covered by private health insurance may be more likely to use healthcare services because it helps offset the cost of such services. As health insurance coverage rises, demand for physical therapy services tends to also increase.
The outpatient physical therapy market is highly fragmented, rapidly evolving and highly competitive. Competition within the industry may intensify in the future as existing competitors and new entrants introduce new physical therapy services and platforms and consolidation in the healthcare industry continues. We currently face competition from the following categories of principal competitors:
•National physical therapy providers;
•Regional physical therapy providers;
•Physician-owned physical therapy providers;
•Individual practitioners or local physical therapy operators, which number in the thousands across the nation; and
•Vertically integrated hospital systems and scaled physician practices.
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We believe the principal competitive factors in the outpatient physical therapy market include the quality of care, cost of care, treatment outcomes, breadth of location and geographic convenience, breadth of patient insurance coverage accepted by clinics, brand awareness and relations with referral sources and key industry participants. We compete in our existing markets by leveraging our unified brand, advertising to increase patient awareness, utilizing sales efforts to establish new and enhance existing relationships with referral sources, applying our team-based approach to care, leveraging our proprietary EMR and data-driven operating platform and striving for high quality of care expectations. Beginning in 2019, physical therapy providers were included in the CMS Quality Payment Program and were eligible to report quality metrics for the Merit-based Incentive Payment System ("MIPS"). We opted to report 2019 performance as an early adopter, and we received an 'exceptional' rating based on the data submitted across our platform and received a quality 'bonus' on 2021 billed CMS payments. Beginning in 2020, the CMS MIPS measures reporting became mandatory for all physical therapy providers. In November 2021, the 2020 scores were finalized and based on our performance we again received an 'exceptional' rating while scoring in the 99th percentile across all clinics and accordingly received the highest possible quality 'bonus' with respect to 2022 billed CMS payments. Furthermore, in August 2022 the 2021 scores were finalized and based on our performance we received an 'exceptional' rating while scoring in the 99th percentile across all clinics. As such, we expect to receive the highest possible quality 'bonus' with respect to 2023 billed CMS payments. We believe the 'exceptional' rating by CMS reflects our commitment to delivering a high quality of care. Additionally, in January 2022 we achieved Credentialing Accreditation status by the National Committee for Quality Assurance ("NCQA"). As an accredited organization, we have demonstrated that our credentialing processes are in accordance with the highest quality standards.
Clinic Fleet
ATI is a nationally recognized outpatient physical therapy provider in the United States specializing in outpatient rehabilitation and adjacent healthcare services, with 923 clinics (as well as 20 clinics under management service agreements) located in 25 states as of December 31, 2022. We opened 110 standalone de novo and acqui-novo clinics over the three years ended December 31, 2022. We have built proprietary methods to identify future sites in urban and suburban, high-traffic areas. By incorporating various datasets, including CMS and census data, we are able to compile a comprehensive assessment of potential new locations. Through our proprietary site-selection tools, we believe there continues to be significant whitespace opportunity within our existing states, with further opportunity available beyond our existing states. However, our capital expenditure, acquisition, de novo and acqui-novo spend depends on many factors, including, but not limited to, the targeted number of new clinic openings, patient volumes, clinician labor market, revenue growth rates and level of operating cash flows. As a result of negative operating cash flows, net losses and liquidity constraints, the number of new clinic openings has decreased in recent years relative to historical years and may continue at lower than historical levels. As a result of these and other factors, we also closed 23 clinics in both 2022 and 2021, and we may continue to right size our clinic fleet through clinic closures and divestitures.
Our Employees and Human Capital Resources
Our business strategy relies on attracting, training, developing, and retaining a skilled workforce. Our clinicians are a driving force for favorable patient outcomes and are key to our success. The Company has aimed to increase its clinical staffing levels by hiring clinicians and reducing levels of clinician attrition that were elevated in recent periods, which was caused, in part, by changes made during the COVID-19 pandemic related to compensation, staffing levels and support for clinicians. We have implemented a range of actions related to compensation, staffing levels, clinical and professional development and other initiatives in an effort to retain and attract therapists across our platform. While we observed improvements in hiring and attrition levels since implementing these actions in 2021, attrition remained above historical levels during periods of 2022 due to a continued tight labor market for available physical therapy and other healthcare providers in the workforce.
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We offer comprehensive Total Rewards in an effort to attract new candidates and retain existing employees. Our Total Rewards program includes, but is not limited to, incentive compensation plans, healthcare and insurance benefits, a 401(k) plan, paid time off and other work-life and wellness benefits. We have focused on adding greater efficiency and effectiveness around accountability and decision rights, acted swiftly and decisively in the advent of COVID-19 to continue our strong commitment to workplace safety and the health and welfare of our clinicians and patients and created leadership and development programs to support clinician career development and growth.
We are an equal opportunity employer and are committed to maintaining a diverse and inclusive work environment. Employees are treated with dignity and respect in an environment free from harassment and discrimination regardless of race, color, age, gender, disability, minority, sexual orientation or any other protected class. Our commitment to diversity and inclusion enables employees to realize their full potential and drives high performance through innovation and collaboration.
As of December 31, 2022, we had approximately 5,700 employees. This number is not inclusive of any contractors or temporary staff but does include our on-call clinicians. We do not have any employees who are represented by a labor union or are party to a collective bargaining agreement.
Impact of COVID-19
COVID-19 has had a significant impact on the outpatient physical therapy industry. In March 2020, as the pandemic began to affect all aspects of daily life, hospitals and surgical centers began to postpone elective and non-essential surgeries, reducing the volume of individuals requiring physical therapy services. Additionally, closures of non-essential businesses, stay-at-home orders, and social-distancing guidelines all adversely impacted the flow of visits to clinics.
We kept the vast majority of our clinics open during this period to ensure that we continued to provide the convenience and services that our patients need. As a substitute to in-person visits, we also quickly introduced our tele-physical therapy offering to improve access for our patients that require physical therapy but were not comfortable with in-person sessions. In response to the suppressed volumes, we quickly down-sized our workforce to better match clinicians to demand at the local level. At the same time, we took significant measures to make sure our employees were cared for, including maintaining health benefits for furloughed workers and reducing executive compensation to establish an employee relief pool that provided assistance to our employees most in need.
Governmental Regulations and Supervision
We are subject to extensive federal, state and local government laws and regulations, including Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement rules and regulations, anti-kickback laws, self-referral prohibition statutes, false claims statutes, exclusions statutes, civil monetary penalty statutes and associated regulations, among others. We are also subject to federal and state laws that regulate the reimbursement of our services and that are designed to prevent fraud and abuse, and impose state licensure and corporate practice of medicine restrictions, as well as federal and state laws and regulations relating to the privacy of individually identifiable information. We maintain a robust compliance program, have made significant investments around our controls across the organization, and we periodically conduct compliance audits and reviews along with compliance training designed to keep our officers, directors and employees educated and up-to-date and to emphasize our policy of strict compliance.
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Reimbursement; Fraud and Abuse
We are subject to laws regulating reimbursement under various federal and state healthcare programs. The marketing, billing, documenting and other practices of healthcare companies are all subject to government scrutiny. To ensure compliance with Medicare, Medicaid and other regulations, health insurance carriers and state agencies often conduct audits and request customer records and other documents to support our claims submitted for payment of services rendered to customers. Similarly, government agencies and their contractors periodically open investigations and obtain information from us and from healthcare providers pursuant to the legal process. Violations of federal and state regulations can result in severe criminal, civil and administrative penalties and sanctions, including disqualification from Medicare and other reimbursement programs, which could significantly impact our financial condition and results of operations.
Various federal and state laws prohibit the submission of false or fraudulent claims, including claims to obtain payment under Medicare, Medicaid, and other government healthcare programs. These laws include the federal False Claims Act, which prohibits persons or entities from knowingly submitting or causing to be submitted a claim that the person knew or should have known (i) to be false or fraudulent; (ii) for items or services not provided or provided as claimed; or (iii) was provided by an individual not otherwise qualified or who was excluded from participation in federal healthcare programs. The False Claims Act also imposes penalties for requests for payment that otherwise violate conditions of participation in federal healthcare programs or other healthcare compliance laws. In recent years, federal and state government agencies have increased the level of enforcement resources and activities targeted at the healthcare industry. Additionally, the False Claims Act and similar state statutes allow individuals to bring lawsuits on behalf of the government, in what are known as qui tam or “whistleblower” actions, and can result in civil and criminal fines, imprisonment, and exclusion from participation in federal and state healthcare programs. The use of these private enforcement actions against healthcare providers has increased dramatically in recent years, in part because the individual filing the initial complaint is entitled to share in a portion of any settlement or judgment. Revisions to the False Claims Act enacted in 2009 expanded significantly the scope of liability, provided for new investigative tools, and made it easier for whistleblowers to bring and maintain False Claims Act suits on behalf of the government.
Anti-Kickback Regulations
We are subject to federal and state laws regulating financial relationships involving federally-reimbursable healthcare services. These laws include Section 1128B(b) of the Social Security Act (the “Anti-Kickback Law”), under which civil and criminal penalties can be imposed upon persons who, among other things, offer, solicit, pay or receive remuneration in return for (i) the referral of patients for the rendering of any item or service for which payment may be made, in whole or in part, by a federal health care program (including Medicare and Medicaid); or (ii) purchasing, leasing, ordering, or arranging for or recommending purchasing, leasing, ordering any good, facility, service, or item for which payment may be made, in whole or in part, by a federal health care program (including Medicare and Medicaid). We believe that our business procedures and business arrangements are in compliance with these laws and regulations. However, the provisions are broadly written and the full extent of their specific application to specific facts and arrangements to which we are a party is uncertain and difficult to predict. In addition, several states have enacted state laws similar to the Anti-Kickback Law, many of which are more restrictive than the federal Anti-Kickback Law.
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The Office of the Inspector General (“OIG”) of the Health and Human Services Department has issued regulations describing compensation arrangements that fall within a “Safe Harbor” and, therefore, are not viewed as illegal remuneration under the Anti-Kickback Law. Failure to fall within a Safe Harbor does not mean that the Anti-Kickback Law has been violated; however, the OIG has indicated that failure to fall within a Safe Harbor may subject an arrangement to increased scrutiny under a “facts and circumstances” test. Federal case law provides limited guidance as to the application of the Anti-Kickback Law to these arrangements. However, we believe our arrangements, including our compensation and financial arrangements, comply with the Anti-Kickback Law. If our arrangements are found to violate the Anti-Kickback Law, it could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. Penalties for violations include denial of payment for the services, significant criminal and civil monetary penalties, and exclusion from the Medicare and Medicaid programs. In addition, claims resulting from a violation of the Anti-Kickback Law are considered false for purposes of the False Claims Act.
Physician Self-Referral
Provisions of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993 (42 U.S.C. § 1395nn) (the “Stark Law”) prohibit referrals by a physician of “designated health services” which are payable, in whole or in part, by Medicare or Medicaid, to an entity in which the physician or the physician’s immediate family member has an investment interest or other financial relationship, subject to several exceptions. The Stark Law is a strict liability statute and proof of intent to violate the Stark Law is not required. Physical therapy services are among the “designated health services” subject to the Stark Law. Further, the Stark Law has application to our management contracts with individual physicians and physician groups, as well as, any other financial relationship between us and referring physicians, including medical advisor arrangements and any financial transaction resulting from a clinic acquisition. The Stark Law also prohibits billing for services rendered pursuant to a prohibited referral. Several states have enacted laws similar to the Stark Law. These state laws may cover all (not just Medicare and Medicaid) patients. As with the Anti-Kickback Law, we consider the Stark Law in planning our clinics, establishing contractual and other arrangements with physicians, marketing and other activities, and believe that our operations are in compliance with the Stark Law. If we violate the Stark Law or any similar state laws, our financial results and operations could be adversely affected. Penalties for violations include denial of payment for the services, significant civil monetary penalties, and exclusion from the Medicare and Medicaid programs.
Corporate Practice; Fee-Splitting; Professional Licensure
The laws of some states restrict or prohibit the “corporate practice of medicine,” meaning business corporations cannot provide medical services through the direct employment of medical providers, or by exercising control over medical decisions by medical providers. In some states, the specific restrictions explicitly apply to physical therapy services, in others the specific restrictions have been interpreted to apply to physical therapy services or are not fully developed. The specific restrictions with respect to enforcement of the corporate practice of medicine or physical therapy vary from state to state and certain states in which we operate may present higher risk than others.
Many states also have laws that prohibit a non-physical therapy entity, individual, or provider fee-splitting. Generally, these laws restrict business arrangements that involve a physical therapist sharing professional fees with a referral source, but in some states, these laws have been interpreted to extend to management agreements between physical therapists and business entities under some circumstances.
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We believe that each of our facilities and medical provider partners comply with any current corporate practice and fee-splitting laws of the state in which they are located. However, such laws and regulations vary from state to state and are enforced by governmental, judicial, law enforcement or regulatory authorities with broad discretion. We cannot be certain that our interpretation of certain laws and regulations is correct with respect to how we have structured our operations, service agreements and other arrangements with physical therapists in the states in which we operate. Future interpretations of corporate practice and fee-splitting laws, the enactment of new legislation, or the adoption of new regulations relating to these laws could cause us to have to restructure our business operations or close our facilities in a particular state.
Health Information Practices
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 ("HIPAA") required the Health and Human Services Department to adopt standards to protect the privacy and security of individually identifiable health-related information. HIPAA created a source of funding for fraud control to coordinate federal, state and local healthcare law enforcement programs, conduct investigations, provide guidance to the healthcare industry concerning fraudulent healthcare practices, and establish a national data bank to receive and report final adverse actions. HIPAA also criminalized certain forms of health fraud against all public and private payors. Additionally, HIPAA mandates the adoption of standards regarding the exchange of healthcare information in an effort to ensure the privacy and electronic security of patient information and standards relating to the privacy of health information. Sanctions for failing to comply with HIPAA include criminal penalties and civil sanctions. In February of 2009, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (“ARRA”) was signed into law. Title XIII of ARRA, HITECH, provided for substantial Medicare and Medicaid incentives for providers to adopt electronic health records (“EHRs”) and grants for the development of health information exchange (“HIE”). Recognizing that HIE and EHR systems will not be implemented unless the public can be assured that the privacy and security of patient information in such systems is protected, HITECH also significantly expanded the scope of the privacy and security requirements under HIPAA. Most notable are the mandatory breach notification requirements and a heightened enforcement scheme that includes increased penalties, and which now apply to business associates as well as to covered entities. In addition to HIPAA, a number of states have adopted laws and/or regulations applicable in the use and disclosure of individually identifiable health information that can be more stringent than comparable provisions under HIPAA.
In addition to HIPAA, there are numerous federal and state laws and regulations addressing patient and consumer privacy concerns, including unauthorized access or theft of personal information. State statutes and regulations vary from state to state, some of which are more stringent than HIPAA.
We believe that our operations comply with applicable standards for privacy and security of protected healthcare information. We cannot predict what negative effect, if any, HIPAA/HITECH or any applicable state law or regulation will have on our business.
Other Regulatory Factors
Political, economic and regulatory influences are fundamentally changing the healthcare industry in the United States. Congress, state legislatures and the private sector continue to review and assess alternative healthcare delivery and payment systems. Potential alternative approaches could include mandated basic healthcare benefits, controls on healthcare spending through limitations on the growth of private health insurance premiums and Medicare and Medicaid spending, the creation of large insurance purchasing groups, and price controls. Legislative debate is expected to continue in the future and market forces are expected to demand only modest increases or reduced costs. For instance, managed care entities are demanding lower reimbursement rates from healthcare providers and, in some cases, are requiring or encouraging providers to accept capitated payments that may not allow providers to cover their full costs or realize traditional levels of profitability. We cannot reasonably predict what impact the adoption of federal or state healthcare reform measures or future private sector reform may have on our business.
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Available Information
We are subject to the information and periodic reporting requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and, therefore, file periodic reports, proxy statements and other information with the SEC. Such periodic reports, proxy statements and other information are available on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.
Our website address is www.atipt.com. Our filings with the SEC, as well as other pertinent financial and Company information, are available at no cost on our website through the investor relations section as soon as reasonably practicable after the filing of such reports with the SEC. The information on our website is not incorporated as a part of this Annual Report.
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Item 1A. Risk Factors
Our operations and financial results are subject to various risks and uncertainties that could adversely affect our business. You should consider carefully the risks and uncertainties described below before deciding to invest in our Common Stock, in addition to other information contained in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, including our consolidated financial statements and related notes and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations."
The following risks and uncertainties are not the only ones we face. Additional risks and uncertainties that we are unaware of, or that we currently believe are not material, may also become important factors that adversely affect our business. If any of the following risks or others not specified below materialize, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected. In that case, the trading price of our Common Stock could decline. The risks discussed below also include forward-looking statements, and our actual results may differ substantially from those discussed in these forward-looking statements. See “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements.”
Risk Factor Summary
We are providing the following summary of the risk factors contained in our Form 10-K to enhance the readability and usefulness of our risk factor disclosures. This summary should be read in conjunction with the full risk factors contained in this Form 10-K and should not be relied upon as an exhaustive summary of the material risks facing our business. The order of presentation is not necessarily indicative of the level of risk that each factor poses to us.
•Our liquidity position raises substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern;
•If we fail to comply with covenants related to our debt agreement or our Series A Senior Preferred Stock, it could result in the acceleration of some or all of our debt and preferred stock obligations;
•We depend upon governmental payors through Medicare and Medicaid;
•Growth in Medicaid expenditures is not anticipated;
•Payments we receive from Medicare and Medicaid are subject to potential retroactive reduction;
•We depend upon reimbursement by third-party payors;
•Payments from workers’ compensation payors may be reduced or eliminated;
•Our payor contracts are subject to renegotiation or termination;
•We are subject to risks associated with public health crises and epidemics / pandemics;
•We are subject to risks related to COVID-19, including the impact on our workforce of mandatory COVID-19 vaccinations and reduced clinic visits;
•We may be adversely affected by natural disasters, pandemics and other catastrophic events;
•We are subject to increases in cost inflation and risks related to a potential recession;
•We operate in a competitive industry;
•We may be unable to use our net operating loss carryforwards;
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•Rapid technological change in our industry presents us with significant risks and challenges;
•We may be unable to maintain high levels of service and patient satisfaction;
•Our current locations may become unattractive and attractive new locations may not be available for a reasonable price, if at all;
•We may incur closure costs and losses;
•Our ability to generate revenue is highly sensitive to the strength of the economies, demographics and populations of the local communities that we serve;
•The size and expected growth of our addressable market has not been established with precision and may be smaller than estimated;
•Our financial results could vary significantly from quarter to quarter and are difficult to predict;
•As participants in Medicare and Medicaid programs, we are subject to various governmental laws and regulations;
•An adverse inspection, review, audit or investigation could result in fines, penalties and other sanctions, including license revocation or exclusion from participation in the Medicare or Medicaid programs or one or more managed care payor networks;
•The issuance of additional equity securities in the future would result in dilution to existing holders of our Common Stock;
•We may issue debt or debt securities convertible into equity securities that are senior to our Common Stock as to distributions or in liquidation;
•Future issuances of our Common Stock or securities convertible into or exchangeable for our Common Stock, as well as sales of our Common Stock in the public markets, or the perception of such issuances or sales, could depress the trading price of our Common Stock;
•The price and volume of our Common Stock have been volatile and fluctuates substantially;
•We may be subject to securities litigation, which is expensive and could divert management attention;
•The requirements of being a public company may strain our resources, divert management’s attention and affect our ability to attract and retain qualified members of our Board of Directors;
•If we fail to maintain an effective system of internal controls, we may not be able to accurately report our financial results or prevent fraud which could subject us to regulatory sanctions, harm our business and operating results and cause the trading price of our Common Stock to decline;
•Our efforts to regain compliance and continue operating as an NYSE-listed public company involve continued significant costs and devotion of substantial management time, and may ultimately not be successful; and
•Inaccurate or unfavorable analyst research reports or reduced analyst coverage could adversely affect our stock price and trading volume.
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Risks Relating to Liquidity
Our liquidity position raises substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern.
The Company has negative operating cash flows, operating losses and net losses in the current year. Based on current liquidity and projected cash use, the Company anticipates violation of its $30.0 million minimum liquidity covenant under its 2022 Credit Agreement within the next twelve months. As a result of the above factors, there is substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern within the twelve months following the issuance date of the consolidated financial statements as of and for the period ended December 31, 2022.
If the Company does not complete the Transaction as contemplated by the TSA or otherwise access additional financing, the Company will need to consider other alternatives, including pursuing separate amendments to or waivers of the minimum liquidity covenant, the requirement to deliver audited financial statements without certain going concern qualifications, and other requirements under the 2022 Credit Agreement, as well as raising funds from other sources, obtaining alternate financing, disposal of assets, or pursuing other strategic alternatives to improve its liquidity position and business results. There can be no assurance that the Company will be successful in completing the Transaction or accessing such alternative options or financing when needed. Failure to do so could have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, and may lead to events including bankruptcy, reorganization or insolvency.
In addition, the report of the Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm accompanying the consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2022 contains an explanatory paragraph expressing substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. Absent an amendment or waiver, the 2022 Credit Agreement provides that the receipt of a report of the Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm containing an explanatory paragraph expressing substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern could be an event of default, subject to certain exceptions. Pursuant to the TSA, the First Lien Lenders have agreed that, prior to the Outside Closing Date, they will forbear in the exercise of any rights, remedies, powers, privileges and defenses under the 2022 Credit Agreement arising on account of a default, alleged default or event of default (if any) resulting from the going concern explanatory paragraph in the report of the Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm accompanying the consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2022. However, if the transactions contemplated by the TSA are not consummated on its terms or at all, the First Lien Lenders could claim that a default or event of default has occurred under the 2022 Credit Agreement. If such claim is not waived by the First Lien Lenders and the Company is unsuccessful in disputing any such claims (including with respect to the applicability of one of the enumerated exceptions to the 2022 Credit Agreement requirement), the Company could be considered to have an event of default after the expiration of the applicable cure periods. In such event, all amounts outstanding under the 2022 Credit Facility, together with any accrued interest, could then be declared immediately due and payable and could be reclassified to current in the Company's consolidated financial statements for the period. A default on our obligations and an acceleration of our indebtedness by our lenders would have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, and may lead to events including bankruptcy, reorganization or insolvency.
On March 15, 2023, the Company entered into a Transaction Support Agreement (the “TSA”) with certain of its first lien lenders under the 2022 Credit Agreement (the "First Lien Lenders"), the administrative agent under the 2022 Credit Agreement, holders of its Series A Senior Preferred Stock (the "Preferred Equityholders") and holders of the majority of its common stock (together with the First Lien Lenders and the Preferred Equityholders, the “Parties”), setting forth the principal terms of a comprehensive transaction to enhance the Company's liquidity (the "Transaction"). Pursuant to the TSA, and subject to the terms and conditions thereof, the Parties have agreed to support, act in good faith and take all steps reasonably necessary and desirable to consummate the transactions referenced therein by June 15, 2023 (the “Outside Closing Date”).
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The TSA contemplates, among other things, (i) a delayed draw new money financing, available under certain circumstances until the 18 month anniversary of the closing date of the transactions, in an aggregate principal amount equal to $25.0 million in the form of new second lien PIK exchangeable notes (“Second Lien PIK Exchangeable Notes”), (ii) exchange of $100.0 million of the aggregate principal amount of the term loans under the 2022 Credit Facility held by certain of the Preferred Equityholders for Second Lien PIK Exchangeable Notes, (iii) a reduction of the thresholds applicable to the minimum liquidity financial covenant under the 2022 Credit Agreement for certain periods, (iv) a waiver of the requirement to comply with the Secured Net Leverage Ratio financial covenant under the 2022 Credit Agreement for the fiscal quarters ending June 30, 2024, September 30, 2024 and December 31, 2024 and a modification of the levels and certain component definitions applicable thereto in the fiscal quarters ending after December 31, 2024, (v) waiver of the requirement for the Company to deliver audited financial statements without certain going concern qualifications for the years ended December 31, 2022, December 31, 2023, and December 31, 2024, (vi) an increase in the interest rate payable on the existing term loans and revolving loans until the achievement of a specified financial metric and (vii) board representation and observer rights, and other changes to the governance of the Company. The Second Lien PIK Exchangeable Notes would be exchangeable for shares of Class A common stock of the Company at a fixed price of $0.25, and the holders thereof would have the right to vote on corporate matters on an as-exchanged basis. The TSA contains certain representations, warranties and other agreements by the Company and Parties. In accordance with the TSA, the First Lien Lenders agreed that, prior to the Outside Closing Date, they will forbear in the exercise of any rights, remedies, powers, privileges and defenses under the 2022 Credit Agreement arising on account of an alleged default or event of default (if any) resulting from the going concern explanatory paragraph in the independent auditors' report accompanying the consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2022 (the "Credit Agreement Forbearance"). The Parties' obligations under the TSA are, and the closing of the Transaction is, subject to various customary terms and conditions set forth therein, including the execution and delivery of definitive documentation and approval by the Company's stockholders.
There is no assurance that the transactions contemplated by the TSA will be consummated on the terms as described above, on a timely basis or at all.
We may be unable to generate sufficient cash and may be required to take other actions, which may not be successful, to satisfy our obligations.
To the extent our operating cash flows, together with our cash on hand and access to our revolving credit facility, become insufficient to cover our liquidity and capital requirements, including funds for any future acquisitions and other corporate transactions, we may be required to seek third-party financing or an alternative liquidity or capital transaction. There can be no assurance that we would be able to obtain any required financing, or complete an alternative liquidity or capital transaction, on a timely basis or at all. Further, lenders and other financial institutions could require us to agree to more restrictive covenants, grant liens on our assets as collateral and/or accept other terms that are not commercially beneficial to us in order to obtain financing. Such terms could further restrict our operations and exacerbate any impact on our results of operations and liquidity.
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We have outstanding indebtedness and may incur additional debt in the future.
We have outstanding indebtedness that could have detrimental consequences on our ability to obtain additional debt or other financing as needed for working capital, acquisition costs, other capital expenditures or general corporate purposes. We cannot be certain that cash flow from operations will be sufficient to allow us to pay principal and interest on the debt, support operations and meet other obligations. If we do not have the resources to meet our obligations, we may be required to refinance all or part of our outstanding debt, sell assets or borrow more money. We may not be able to do so on acceptable terms, in a timely manner, or at all. If we are unable to refinance our debt on acceptable terms, we may be forced to dispose of our assets on disadvantageous terms, potentially resulting in losses. Defaults under our debt agreement could have a material adverse effect on our business, prospects, liquidity, financial condition or results of operations.
Certain of our borrowings and other obligations are based upon variable rates of interest, which could result in higher expense in the event of increases in interest rates.
Borrowings under the 2022 Credit Agreement are subject to variable rates of interest and subject us to interest rate risk. During 2022, a rising interest rate environment was observed and interest rates may continue to rise again in the future. Such increases in interest rates would increase interest payment obligations under the 2022 Credit Agreement and could have a negative effect on our cash flow and/or financial condition.
At times, we have sought to reduce our exposure to interest rate fluctuations by entering into interest rate hedging arrangements. However, any hedging arrangements we enter into may not fully mitigate our interest rate risk, may prove disadvantageous or may create additional risks.
Our outstanding indebtedness and our Series A Senior Preferred Stock contains covenants that may limit certain operating and financial decisions. Non-compliance with these covenants may result in the acceleration of our indebtedness which could lead to bankruptcy, reorganization or insolvency.
Our credit agreement contains restrictive and financial covenants, and the Certificate of Designation for our Series A Senior Preferred Stock contains provisions that impose significant operating and financial restrictions that may limit our ability to take actions that may be in our long-term best interest. Our credit agreement contains customary representations and warranties, events of default, reporting and other affirmative covenants and negative covenants including, but not limited to, requirements related to the delivery of independent audit reports without certain going concern qualifications, limitations on indebtedness, liens, investments, negative pledges, dividends, junior debt payments, fundamental changes and asset sales and affiliate transactions. The financial covenants also require us to maintain minimum liquidity or a secured net leverage ratio as of each fiscal quarter end, which we may be unable to meet.
In addition, the Certificate of Designation for our Series A Senior Preferred Stock contains provisions that may likewise impose significant operating and financial restrictions on our business. If an Event of Noncompliance (as defined in the Certificate of Designation) occurs, then the holders of a majority of the then outstanding shares of Series A Senior Preferred Stock (but excluding any shares of Series A Senior Preferred Stock then held by Advent International Corporation or its controlled affiliates) (the “Majority Holders”) have the right to demand that the Company engage in a sale/refinancing process for the Series A Senior Preferred Stock.
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Failure to comply with our debt agreement or our Series A Senior Preferred Stock could have a material adverse effect on our business, prospects, liquidity, financial condition or results of operation. If we are unable to cure covenant defaults within any applicable grace periods or obtain waivers or acceptable refinancing, such defaults could result in the acceleration of some or all of our indebtedness, which could lead to bankruptcy, reorganization or insolvency.
Risks Relating to our Business and Industry
We depend upon governmental payors through Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement and decreases in Medicare reimbursement rates may adversely affect our financial results.
A significant portion of our net patient revenue is derived from governmental third-party payors. In 2022, approximately 24.2% of our net patient revenue was derived from Medicare and Medicaid. In recent years, through legislative and regulatory actions, the federal government has made substantial changes to various payment systems under the Medicare program. Additional reforms or other changes to these payment systems may be proposed or adopted, either by the U.S. Congress (“Congress”) or by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”), including bundled payments, outcomes-based payment methodologies and a shift away from traditional fee-for-service reimbursement. If revised regulations are adopted, the availability, methods and rates of Medicare reimbursements for services of the type furnished at our facilities could change. Some of these changes and proposed changes could adversely affect our business strategy, operations and financial results. The Medicare program reimburses outpatient rehabilitation providers based on the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (“MPFS”). Beginning in January 2021, the physical therapy industry observed a reduction of Medicare reimbursement rates of approximately 3% in accordance with the MPFS for therapy services. Beginning in January 2022, the physical therapy industry observed a reduction of Medicare reimbursement rates of approximately 0.75%, as well as a 15% decrease in payments for services performed by physical therapy assistants. Additionally, a further reduction through resuming sequestration was postponed. Sequestration reductions resumed at 1% after March 31, 2022, and by an additional 1% after June 30, 2022, which resulted in an overall reduction of 2% in reimbursement rates related to sequestration after June 30, 2022. In July 2022, the CMS released its proposed 2023 MPFS which called for an approximate 4.5% reduction in the calendar year 2023 conversion factor. In December 2022, the Consolidated Appropriations Act (2023) was signed into law. The Consolidated Appropriations Act (2023) provides partial relief related to Medicare cuts including 2.5% relief in 2023 and 1.25% relief in 2024. As a result, the reimbursement rate reduction beginning in January 2023 was approximately 2.0%.
Statutes, regulations and payment rules governing the delivery of therapy services to Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries are complex and subject to interpretation. Compliance with such laws and regulations requires significant expense and management attention and can be subject to future government review and interpretation, as well as significant regulatory actions, including fines, penalties and exclusion from the Medicare and Medicaid programs if we are found to be in non-compliance. Any required actions to return to compliance, or any challenges to such regulatory actions, could be costly and time consuming and may not result in a favorable reversal of any such fines, penalties or exclusions.
Given the history of frequent revisions to the Medicare and Medicaid programs and their complexity, reimbursement rates and rules, we may not continue to receive reimbursement rates from Medicare or Medicaid that sufficiently compensate us for services or, in some instances, cover operating costs. Limits on reimbursement rates or the scope of services being reimbursed could have a material adverse effect on our revenue, financial condition and results of operations. Additionally, any delay or default by the federal or state governments in making Medicare or Medicaid reimbursement payments could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
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We anticipate the federal and state governments to continue their efforts to contain growth in Medicaid expenditures, which could adversely affect our revenue and profitability.
Medicaid spending has increased rapidly in recent years, becoming a significant component of state budgets. This, combined with slower state revenue growth, has led the federal government and many states to institute measures aimed at controlling the growth of Medicaid spending, and in some instances reducing aggregate Medicaid spending. We expect these state and federal efforts to continue for the foreseeable future. Furthermore, not all of the states in which we operate have elected to expand Medicaid as part of federal healthcare reform legislation. There can be no assurance that the program, on the current terms or otherwise, will continue for any particular period of time beyond the foreseeable future. Historically, state budget pressures have translated into reductions in state spending. In addition, an economic downturn, coupled with sustained unemployment, may also impact the number of enrollees in managed care programs as well as the profitability of managed care companies, which could result in reduced reimbursement rates. If Medicaid reimbursement rates are reduced or fail to increase as quickly as our costs, or if there are changes in the rules governing the Medicaid program that are disadvantageous to our business, our business and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected.
Payments we receive from Medicare and Medicaid are subject to potential retroactive reduction.
Payments we receive from Medicare and Medicaid can be retroactively adjusted during the claims settlement process or as a result of post-payment audits. Payors may disallow our requests for reimbursement, or recoup amounts previously reimbursed, based on determinations by the payors or their third-party audit contractors that certain costs are not reimbursable because the documentation provided was inadequate or because certain services were not covered or were deemed medically unnecessary. Significant adjustments, recoupments or repayments of our Medicare or Medicaid revenue, and the costs associated with complying with audits and investigations by regulatory and governmental authorities, could adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations.
Additionally, from time to time we become aware, either based on information provided by third-parties and/or the results of internal reviews, of payments from payor sources that were either wholly or partially in excess of the amount that we should have been paid for the services provided. We are also subject to regular post-payment inquiries, investigations and audits of the claims we submit to Medicare and Medicaid for payment for our services. These post-payment reviews have increased as a result of government cost-containment initiatives. Overpayments may result from a variety of factors, including insufficient documentation to support the services rendered or the medical necessity of such services, or other failures to document the satisfaction of the necessary conditions of payment. We are required by law in most instances to refund the full amount of the overpayment after becoming aware of it, and failure to do so within requisite time limits imposed by applicable law could lead to significant fines and penalties being imposed on us. Furthermore, initial billing of and payments for services that are unsupported by the requisite documentation and satisfaction of any other conditions of payment, regardless of our awareness of the failure at the time of the billing or payment, could expose us to significant fines and penalties. We and/or certain of our operating companies could also be subject to exclusion from participation in the Medicare or Medicaid programs in some circumstances, in addition to any monetary or other fines, penalties or sanctions that we may incur under applicable federal and/or state law. Our repayment of any overpayments, as well as any related fines, penalties or other sanctions that we may be subject to, and any costs incurred in responding to requests for records or pursuing the reversal of payment denials, could be significant and could have a material and adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.
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From time to time we are also involved in various external governmental investigations, subpoenas, audits and reviews, including in connection with our claims for reimbursement and associated payments. Reviews, audits and investigations of this sort can lead to governmental subpoenas or other actions, which can result in the assessment of damages, civil or criminal fines or penalties, or other sanctions, including restrictions or changes in the way we conduct business, loss of licensure or exclusion from participation in government programs. Failure to comply with applicable laws, regulations and rules could have a material and adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition. Furthermore, becoming subject to these governmental subpoenas, investigations, audits and reviews can require us to incur significant legal and document production expenses as we cooperate with the governmental authorities, regardless of whether the particular investigation, audit or review leads to the identification of underlying issues.
We depend upon reimbursement by third-party payors.
A significant portion of our revenue is derived from third-party payors. In 2022, approximately 57.6% of our net patient revenue was derived from commercial payors. These private third-party payors attempt to control healthcare costs by contracting with healthcare providers to obtain services on a discounted basis. We believe that this trend may continue and may limit reimbursement for healthcare services in the future. In addition, Company claims are closely scrutinized, and failure to submit accurate and complete clinical documentation, including specific documentation by the service provider, could result in adverse actions taken by the payor. Further, if insurers or managed care companies from whom we receive substantial payments were to reduce the amounts they pay for services, our profit margins may decline, or we may lose patients if we choose not to renew our contracts with these insurers at lower rates. In addition, in certain geographical areas, our clinics must be approved as providers by key health maintenance organizations and preferred provider plans. Failure to obtain or maintain these approvals would adversely affect our financial results.
If payments from workers’ compensation payors are reduced or eliminated, our revenue and profitability could be adversely affected.
In 2022, approximately 12.4% of our net patient revenue was derived from workers’ compensation payors. State workers’ compensation laws and regulations vary and changes to state laws could result in decreased reimbursement by third-party payors for physical therapy services, which could have an adverse impact on our revenue. Further, payments received under certain workers’ compensation arrangements may be based on pre-determined state fee schedules, which may be impacted by changes in state funding. Any modification to such schedules that reduces our ability to receive payments from workers’ compensation payors could be significant and could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition. We may continue to experience unfavorable changes in rates and payor and service mix shifts toward lower reimbursing payor classes as opposed to higher reimbursing classes such as workers' compensation and auto personal injury. These changes may reflect longer term trends in our markets. Adverse changes in payor mix and/or payor rates are likely to adversely affect our results of operations in future periods, which effects may be material.
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Our payor contracts are subject to renegotiation or termination, which could result in a decrease in our revenue or profits.
The majority of our payor contracts are subject to termination by either party. Such contracts are routinely amended (sometimes through unilateral action by payors with respect to payment policies), renegotiated, subjected to bidding processes with our competitors, or terminated altogether. Oftentimes in the renegotiation process, certain lines of business may not be renewed or a payor may enlarge its provider network or otherwise change the way it conducts its business in a way that adversely impacts our revenue. In other cases, a payor may reduce its provider network in exchange for lower payment rates. Our revenue from a payor may also be adversely affected if the payor alters its utilization management expectations and/or administrative procedures for payments and audits, changes its order of preference among the providers to which it refers business or imposes a third-party administrator, network manager or other intermediary.
We are subject to risks associated with public health crises and epidemics / pandemics, such as COVID-19 (including variants and any future emerging variants).
Our operations expose us to risks associated with public health crises and epidemics / pandemics, such as the COVID-19 pandemic that has spread globally since early 2020.
The COVID-19 pandemic (including variants and any future emerging variants) has had, and may continue to have, a material and adverse impact on our operations, including through restrictions on the operation of physical locations, potential cancellations of physical therapy patient appointments, clinical staff unavailable to work due to sickness or exposure and a decline in the scheduling of new or additional patient appointments. Due to these impacts and measures, we have experienced, and may continue to experience, significant and unpredictable reductions and cancellations of patient visits.
The spread of COVID-19, and the related global, national and regional policy response has also led to disruption and volatility in the global capital markets, which increases economic uncertainty and the cost of, and adversely impacts access to, capital. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused economic impacts with potentially extended duration, and could directly or indirectly cause a global recession, continued elevated wage inflation, inflation in the cost of goods, services and other operating inputs, changes in the market interest rate environment and other economic impacts.
The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the global economy and caused significant macroeconomic uncertainty. Infection rates have varied across the country in which we operate. As we have experienced with recent variants, there may be additional waves of infection, which could be more contagious than prior waves. Governmental authorities have implemented numerous and constantly evolving measures to try to contain the virus, such as travel bans and restrictions, masking recommendations and mandates, vaccine recommendations and mandates, limits on gatherings, quarantines, shelter-in-place orders and business shutdowns. Government measures intended to address the COVID-19 pandemic, such as mandatory quarantines, vaccine mandates and regular testing requirements, could also impact the availability of our employees or other workers or could lead to attrition of key employees or reduced visits.
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Our financial results have been, and are expected to continue to be, negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Visits per day decreased approximately 50.5%, 27.9% and 24.4% in the quarters ended June 30, 2020, September 30, 2020 and December 31, 2020, respectively, in relation to the comparative prior year periods. While we have experienced relative increases in quarterly visits per day following the low point in the quarter ended June 30, 2020, we continue to experience lower aggregate patient volumes in many geographic areas in which we operate as compared to prior to the pandemic. Visits per day during the year ended December 31, 2022 were approximately 86.7% of visits per day during the year ended December 31, 2019. The current economic conditions resulting from COVID-19 have significantly impacted consumer behavior, which have reduced, and could continue to reduce, customer spend on certain medical procedures, including physical therapy, in both the short- and medium-term. Furthermore, we are unable to predict the impact that COVID-19 may have going forward on our business, results of operations or financial position of any of our major payors, which could impact each payor to a varying degree and at different times and could ultimately impact our own financial performance. Certain of our competitors may also be better equipped to weather the impact of COVID-19 and be better able to address changes in customer demand.
Additionally, enhanced cleaning, sanitization and social distancing protocols, mask policy for all clinicians, patients and support staff and screening protocols for all employees and patients designed to identify possible COVID-19 symptoms, and initiatives we may take in the future, require expenditures of time and resources that we would otherwise be investing in growing the business and could result in slower growth and opportunity costs.
The COVID-19 pandemic could cause any of the impacts described above to recur or could cause other unpredictable events, including events that could impact our ability to access funds from financial institutions and capital markets on terms favorable to us, or at all, and there can be no assurance that the COVID-19 pandemic will not materially impact our results of operations and financial position in the future. Further, even though certain vaccines have been widely distributed and accepted in some geographies, there can be no assurance that the vaccines will ultimately be successful in limiting or stopping the spread of COVID-19, either over the long-term or against new, emerging variants of COVID-19. Even after the COVID-19 pandemic subsides, the U.S. economy and other major global economies may experience a recession, and we anticipate our business and operations could be materially adversely affected by a prolonged recession in the U.S. and other major markets. Therefore, it remains difficult to predict the ultimate impact of the pandemic on our results of operations and financial position. In addition to the extent that COVID-19 adversely affects our results of operations or financial position, it may also heighten the other risks described in this Item 1A. Risk Factors.
The full extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic and the various governmental responses to it impact our business, operations and financial results will depend on numerous other evolving factors that we may not be able to accurately predict, including:
•the duration and scope of the pandemic;
•the effectiveness of vaccines against COVID-19 (including against emerging variant strains);
•governmental, business and individual actions that have been and continue to be taken in response to the pandemic, and the resulting impacts on our patient volumes and other aspects of our business;
•the impact on our workforce of mandatory COVID-19 vaccination of employees;
•availability and size of the clinical labor force, competition for the employment of clinical labor and wage inflation related to clinical labor;
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•our ability to comply with the requirements necessary to retain the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act provider relief funds we received;
•the effect on our patient, physician and facility referral sources and demand and ability to pay for physical therapy services;
•disruptions of or restrictions on the ability of our employees to travel and to work, including as a result of their health and well-being;
•availability of third-party providers to whom we outsource portions of our internal business functions, including billing and administrative functions relating to revenue cycle management;
•increased cybersecurity risks as a result of remote working conditions;
•the availability and cost of accessing the capital markets;
•our ability to pursue, diligence, finance and integrate acquisitions;
•our ability to comply with financial and operating covenants in our debt, preferred stock and operating lease agreements; and
•potential for goodwill, intangible and other asset impairment charges.
Furthermore, COVID-19 could increase the magnitude of many of the other risks described herein and have other adverse effects on our operations that we are not currently able to predict. Additionally, we may also be required to delay or limit our internal strategies in the short- and medium-term by, for example, redirecting significant resources and management attention away from implementing our strategic priorities or executing opportunistic corporate development transactions.
The magnitude of the effect of COVID-19 on our business will depend, in part, on the length and severity of the COVID-19- related restrictions (including the effects of any “re-opening” actions and plans) and other limitations on our ability to conduct its business in the ordinary course. The longer the pandemic continues, the more severe the impacts described above will be on our business (which may also be disproportionately larger in certain local areas compared to the national level). The extent, length and consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic are uncertain and impossible to predict. COVID-19 and other similar outbreaks, epidemics or pandemics could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, and could cause significant volatility in the trading prices of our securities.
We are subject to risks related to the impact on our workforce of mandatory COVID-19 vaccination of employees.
We operate in certain states that currently mandate COVID-19 vaccines for healthcare workers. While certain states have removed vaccination requirements, or allow for alternative methods to comply with such vaccination requirements, it is not possible to predict potential changes to these regulations or the impact that these regulations may have on the Company or its workforce. Similar mandatory vaccination or testing requirements that may become applicable to our employees, at the federal, state or local levels, may result in employee attrition and could have a material adverse effect on our business, including future revenue, costs and results of operations.
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We are subject to increases in the cost inflation necessary for the provision of our services and we may not be able to fully offset this cost inflation on a timely basis or at all.
Many of the components of our cost of services are subject to price increases that are attributable to factors beyond our control, including but not limited to, costs of clinician services and other professional services, contract labor, janitorial services, support staff services and clinic supplies. In the latter part of 2021 and continuing in 2022, input costs have increased materially and at a historically high rate. The pressures of input cost inflation may continue. To the extent we are unable to offset present and future input cost increases, our operating results could be materially and adversely affected.
We operate in a competitive industry, and if we are not able to compete effectively, our business, financial condition and results of operations may be harmed.
Current or potential patients may seek competitive services in lieu of our services. If we are unable to compete successfully in the physical therapy industry, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected.
The outpatient physical therapy market is rapidly evolving and highly competitive, and subject to vertical integration. Such vertical integration could reduce the market opportunity for our services. Competition may intensify in the future as existing competitors and new entrants introduce new physical therapy services and platforms. We currently face competition from a range of companies, including other incumbent providers of physical therapy consultation services, that are continuing to grow and enhance their service offerings and develop more sophisticated and effective service platforms. In addition, since there are limited capital expenditures required for providing physical therapy services, there are few financial barriers to enter the industry. Other companies could enter the healthcare industry in the future and divert some or all of our business. Competition from specialized physical therapy service providers, healthcare providers, hospital systems and other parties may result in continued pricing and volume pressures, which would be likely to lead to price and volume declines in certain of our services, all of which could negatively impact our sales, profitability and market share.
Referrals and other methods of driving patient volumes are important to our profitability. We have implemented and are implementing strategies to improve our level of referrals, and if these measures are not successful, or if we are not able to successfully capture referrals or visit demand, it could lead to a decline in patient volumes and revenues, which could negatively impact our profitability and market share.
Some competitors may have greater name recognition, longer operating histories and significantly greater resources than us. Further, our current or potential competitors may be acquired by third-parties with greater available resources. As a result, our competitors may be able to respond more quickly and effectively than us to new or changing opportunities, technologies, standards or client requirements and may have the ability to initiate or withstand substantial price competition. In addition, current and potential competitors have established, and may in the future establish, cooperative relationships with vendors of complementary products, technologies or services to increase the availability of their services in the marketplace. Accordingly, new competitors or alliances may emerge that have greater market share, a larger client base, more widely adopted proprietary technologies, greater marketing expertise, greater financial resources or larger sales forces than ours, which could put us at a competitive disadvantage. Our competitors could also be better positioned to serve certain geographies or segments of the physical therapy market, which could create additional price and volume pressure. As we expand into new geographical areas, we may encounter competitors with stronger relationships or recognition in the community in such new areas, which could give those competitors an advantage in obtaining new patients or retaining existing ones.
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We also compete for physical therapists and we experienced elevated levels of attrition during periods of 2021 and 2022, which has had and may continue to have adverse effects on our business, financial condition, results of operations, as well as our ability to open new clinics. We have taken and are continuing to take actions to increase hiring, reduce attrition and optimize clinician hours based on available workforce, but the impact of hiring and attrition has impacted overall profitability through wage inflation, greater benefits, and increases in other employee costs, as well as required a higher use of contract labor in difficult to staff markets. These labor market dynamics and level of competition are likely to continue. The ultimate impact on our business and industry remains difficult to predict, but may have a material adverse impact on our results of operations, cash flows and financial condition.
Moreover, we expect that competition will continue to increase as a result of consolidation in the healthcare industry. Many healthcare industry participants are consolidating to create integrated healthcare systems with greater market power, including, in some cases, integrating physical therapy services with their core medical practices. As provider networks and managed care organizations consolidate, thus decreasing the number of market participants, competition to provide services like ours may become more intense, and the importance of establishing and maintaining relationships with key industry participants will become greater.
Rapid technological change in our industry presents us with significant risks and challenges.
The healthcare market is characterized by rapid technological change, changing consumer requirements, short product lifecycles and evolving industry standards. Our success will depend on our ability to enhance our brands with next-generation technologies and to develop, acquire and market new services to access new consumer populations. Moreover, we may not be successful in developing, using, selling or maintaining new technologies effectively or adapting solutions to evolving client requirements or emerging industry standards, and, as a result, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected. In addition, we have limited insight into trends that might develop and later affect our business, and which could lead to errors in our analysis of available data or in predicting and reacting to relevant business, legal and regulatory trends and healthcare reform. Further, there can be no assurance that technological advances by one or more of our current or future competitors will not result in our present or future solutions and services becoming uncompetitive or obsolete. If any of these events occur, it could harm our business.
Inability to maintain high levels of service and patient satisfaction could adversely affect our business.
Failure to retain and attract sufficient numbers of qualified personnel could strain our human resources department and impede our growth or result in ineffective growth. In addition, if demand for our services increases, we need to increase our patient services and other personnel, as well as our network of partners, to provide personalized patient service. If we are not able to continue to provide high quality physical therapy services with high levels of patient satisfaction, our reputation, as well as our business, results of operations and financial condition could be adversely affected.
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Our current locations may become unattractive, and attractive new locations may not be available for a reasonable price, if at all, which could adversely affect our business.
The success of any of our clinics depends in substantial part on their locations. There can be no assurance that the current locations will continue to be attractive as demographic patterns and trade areas change. For example, neighborhood or economic conditions where our clinics are located could decline in the future, thus resulting in potentially reduced patient visits. In addition, rising real estate prices in some areas may restrict our ability to lease new desirable locations or increase the cost of operating in such locations. If desirable locations cannot be obtained at reasonable prices, our ability to execute our growth strategies could be adversely affected, and we may be impacted by declines in patient visits as a result of the deterioration of certain locations, each of which could materially and adversely affect our business and results of operations.
We may continue to close clinics and incur closure costs and losses.
The competitive, economic or reimbursement conditions in the markets in which we operate, in addition to labor market conditions and liquidity considerations, may require us to reorganize or close certain clinics. Additionally, there is no guarantee that we will not have to close clinics in the future as a result of COVID-19 or its variants, execute measures designed to reduce the spread of COVID-19, or experience clinical staffing challenges, whether related to COVID-19 or labor market dynamics. Any clinic closures, reorganization or related business disruptions may have a material and adverse effect on our results of operations. In each of fiscal year 2022 and 2021, we closed 23 clinics. In the event a clinic is reorganized or closed, we may incur losses and closure costs, including, but not limited to, lease obligations, severance and write-down or write-off of goodwill, intangible assets or other assets.
We may determine to sell one or more of our clinics, and any such divestiture could adversely affect our continuing business.
We periodically evaluate our various businesses, services lines and clinics and may, as a result, consider the divestiture, wind down or exit of one or more of those clinics. Divestitures have inherent risks, including the inability to find potential buyers with favorable terms, the expense of selling the service line or clinic, the possibility that any anticipated sale will be delayed or will not occur and the potential delay or failure to realize the perceived strategic or financial merits of the divestment.
Our ability to generate revenue is highly sensitive to the strength of the economies in which we operate and the demographics and populations of the local communities that we serve.
Our revenues depend upon a number of factors, including, among others, the size and demographic characteristics of local populations and the economic condition of the communities that our locations serve. In the case of an economic downturn in a market, the utilization of physical therapy services by the local population of such market, and our resulting revenues and profitability in that market, could be adversely affected. Our revenues could also be affected by negative trends in the general economy that affect consumer spending, such as a recession or similar economic downturn. Furthermore, significant demographic changes in, or significant outmigration from, the neighborhoods where our clinics are located could reduce the demand for our services, all of which could materially and adversely affect our business and results of operations.
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The size and expected growth of our addressable market has not been established with precision and may be smaller than estimated.
Our estimates of the addressable market are based on a number of internal and third-party estimates and assumptions. While we believe our assumptions and the data underlying our estimates are reasonable, these assumptions and estimates may not be correct. Accordingly, the expected growth in the market for physical therapy services may prove to be inaccurate, and the actual size of our total addressable market and resulting growth rates may be materially lower than expected.
Risks Relating to Our Operations
We depend upon the cultivation and maintenance of relationships with the physicians and other referral sources in our markets.
Our success is partially dependent upon referrals from physicians in the communities our clinics serve and our ability to maintain good relationships with these physicians and other referral sources. Physicians referring patients to our clinics are free to refer their patients to other therapy providers or to their own physician owned therapy practices. If we are unable to successfully cultivate and maintain strong relationships with such physicians and other referral sources (including as a result of negative publicity (whether true or not)), our business may be negatively impacted and our net revenues may decline. In addition, our relationships with referral sources are subject to extensive laws and regulations, and if those relationships with referral sources are found to be in violation of those requirements, we may be subject to significant civil, criminal and/or administrative penalties, exclusion from participation in government programs, such as Medicare and Medicaid, and/or reputational harm.
We operate our business in regions subject to natural disasters and other catastrophic events, and any disruption to our business resulting from such natural disasters or climate change would adversely affect our revenue and results of operations.
We operate our business in regions subject to severe weather and natural disasters, including hurricanes, floods, fires, earthquakes and other catastrophic events. For example, in February 2021, the state of Texas experienced unprecedented cold weather, resulting in power outages across the state. Nearly all of our clinics in Texas were impacted by the weather, with all clinics closing for at least one day. Additionally, in September and October 2022, the effects of Hurricane Ian negatively impacted certain clinic operations in the southeast region of the U.S. Any natural disaster or impacts from climate change could adversely affect our ability to conduct business and provide services to our customers, and the insurance we maintain may not be adequate to cover losses resulting from any business interruption resulting from a natural disaster or other catastrophic event.
Future acquisitions may use significant resources, may be unsuccessful and could expose us to unforeseen liabilities.
We have historically acquired outpatient physical therapy clinics and it is an important part of our long-term growth strategy. Failure to successfully identify and complete acquisitions would likely result in slower growth. Even if we are able to identify appropriate acquisition targets, we may not be able to execute transactions on favorable terms or integrate targets in a manner that allows us to fully realize the anticipated benefits of these acquisitions. Acquisitions may involve significant cash expenditures, potential debt incurrence and operational losses, dilutive issuances of equity securities and expenses that could have an adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations. Acquisitions also involve numerous risks, including:
•the difficulty and expense of integrating acquired personnel into our business;
•the diversion of management's time from existing operations;
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•the potential loss of key employees of acquired companies and existing customers of the acquired companies that may not be familiar with our brand or services;
•the difficulty of assignment and/or procurement of managed care contractual arrangements; and
•the assumption of the liabilities and exposure to unforeseen liabilities of acquired companies, including liabilities for failure to comply with healthcare regulations.
Failure of our third-party customer service and technical support providers to adequately address customers’ requests could harm our business and adversely affect our financial results.
Our customers rely on our customer service support organization to resolve issues with our services. We outsource a portion of our customer service and technical support activities to third-party service providers. We depend on these third-party customer service and technical support representatives working on our behalf, and expect to continue to rely on third-parties in the future. This strategy presents risks to the business due to the fact that we may not be able to influence the quality of support as directly as we would be able to do if our own employees performed these activities. Our customers may react negatively to providing information to, and receiving support from, third-party organizations, especially if these third-party organizations are based overseas. If we encounter problems with our third-party customer service and technical support providers, our reputation may be harmed, our ability to sell our services could be adversely affected, and we could lose customers and associated revenue.
Our systems infrastructure may not adequately support our operations.
We believe our future success will depend in large part on establishing an efficient and productive information technology (“IT”) systems infrastructure that is able to provide operational intelligence and support our platform. Our systems infrastructure is designed to address interoperability challenges across the healthcare continuum and any failure of our systems infrastructure to identify efficiencies or productivity may impact the execution of our strategies and have a significant impact on our business and operating results. Our inability to continue improving our clinical systems and data infrastructure could impact our ability to perform and continue improving outcomes for patients.
Failure by us to maintain financial controls and processes over billing and collections or disputes with third-parties could have a significant negative impact on our financial condition and results of operations.
The collection of accounts receivable requires constant focus and involvement by management, as well as ongoing enhancements of information systems and billing center operating procedures. There can be no assurance that we will be able to improve upon or maintain our current levels of collectability and days sales outstanding in future periods. Further, some of our patients or payors may experience financial difficulties, or may otherwise fail to pay accounts receivable when due, resulting in increased write-offs. If we are unable to properly bill and collect our accounts receivable, our financial condition and results of operations will be adversely affected. In addition, from time to time we are involved in disputes with various parties, including our payors and their intermediaries regarding their performance of various contractual or regulatory obligations. These disputes sometimes lead to legal and other proceedings and cause us to incur costs or experience delays in collections, increases in our accounts receivable or loss of revenue. In addition, in the event such disputes are not resolved in our favor or cause us to terminate our relationships with such parties, there may be an adverse impact on our financial condition and results of operations.
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Legal and Regulatory Risks Relating to Our Business
Our operations are subject to extensive regulation.
Our operations are subject to extensive federal, state and local government laws and regulations, such as:
•Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement rules and regulations (as discussed above);
•federal and state anti-kickback laws, which prohibit the knowing and willful offer, payment, solicitation or receipt of any bribe, kickback, rebate or other remuneration in return for ordering, leasing, purchasing or recommending or arranging for, or to induce, the referral of an individual, or the ordering, purchasing or leasing of items or services covered, in whole or in part, by any federal healthcare program, such as Medicare and Medicaid;
•the Physician Self-Referral Law and analogous state self-referral prohibition statutes, which, subject to limited exceptions, prohibits physicians from referring Medicare or Medicaid patients to an entity for the provision of certain "designated health services," including physical therapy, if the physician or a member of such physician's immediate family has a direct or indirect financial relationship (including an ownership interest or a compensation arrangement) with an entity, and prohibits the entity from billing Medicare or Medicaid for such "designated health services";
•the federal False Claims Acts (the "False Claims Acts"), which impose civil and/or criminal penalties against any person or entity that knowingly submits or causes to be submitted a claim that the person knew or should have known (i) to be false or fraudulent; (ii) for items or services not provided or provided as claimed; or (iii) was provided by an individual not otherwise qualified or who was excluded from participation in federal healthcare programs. The False Claims Acts also impose penalties for requests for payment that otherwise violate conditions of participation in federal healthcare programs or other healthcare compliance laws;
•U.S.C. 42 U.S. Code § 1320a–7, the Exclusions Statute of the Social Security Act, which subjects healthcare providers to exclusion from participation in federal healthcare programs if they engage in Medicare fraud, patient neglect or abuse / felony convictions related to fraud, breach of fiduciary duties or other financial misconduct related to healthcare service delivery;
•the civil monetary penalty statute and associated regulations, which authorizes the government agency to impose civil money penalties, an assessment, and program exclusion for various forms of fraud and abuse; and
•the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 ("HIPAA"), which created new federal criminal statutes that prohibit knowingly and willfully executing, or attempting to execute, a scheme to defraud any healthcare benefit program or obtain, by means of false or fraudulent pretenses, representations or promises, any of the money or property owned by, or under the custody or control of, any healthcare benefit program, regardless of the payor (e.g., public or private) and knowingly and willfully falsifying, concealing or covering up by any trick or device a material fact or making any materially false statements in connection with the delivery of, or payment for, healthcare benefits, items or services relating to healthcare matters. Similar to the federal Anti-Kickback Law, a person or entity can be found guilty of violating HIPAA without actual knowledge of the statute or specific intent to violate it.
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In recent years, there have been heightened coordinated civil and criminal enforcement efforts by both federal and state government agencies relating to the healthcare industry, and physical therapy providers, in particular, have been subject to increased enforcement. We believe we are in substantial compliance with all laws, but differing interpretations or enforcement of these laws and regulations could subject our current practices to allegations of impropriety or illegality or could require us to make changes in our methods of operations, facilities, equipment, personnel, services and capital expenditure programs and increase our operating expenses. If we fail to comply with these extensive laws and government regulations, we could become ineligible to receive government program reimbursement, suffer civil or criminal penalties or be required to make significant changes to our operations. In addition, we could be forced to expend considerable resources responding to an investigation or other enforcement action under these laws or regulations.
In conducting our business, we are required to comply with applicable state laws regarding fee-splitting and professional corporation laws.
The laws of some states restrict or prohibit the “corporate practice of medicine,” meaning business corporations cannot provide medical services through the direct employment of medical providers, or by exercising control over medical decisions by medical providers. In some states, such restrictions explicitly apply to physical therapy services; in others, those restrictions have been interpreted to apply to physical therapy services or are not fully developed.
Specific restrictions with respect to enforcement of the corporate practice of medicine or physical therapy vary from state to state and certain states in which we operate may present higher risk than others. Each state has its own professional entity laws and unique requirements for entities that provide professional services. Further, states impose varying requirements on the licenses that the stockholders, directors, officers, and professional employees of professional corporations must possess.
Many states also have laws that prohibit non-physical therapy entities, individuals or providers from sharing in or splitting professional fees for patient care (“fee-splitting”). Generally, these laws restrict business arrangements that involve a physical therapist sharing professional fees with a referral source, but in some states, these laws have been interpreted to extend to management agreements between physical therapists and business entities under some circumstances.
Such laws and regulations vary from state to state and are enforced by governmental, judicial, law enforcement or regulatory authorities with broad discretion. Accordingly, we cannot be certain that our interpretation of certain laws and regulations is correct with respect to how we have structured our operations, service agreements and other arrangements with physical therapists in the states in which we operate.
The enforcement environment in any state in which we operate could also change, leading to increased enforcement of existing laws and regulations. If a court or governing body determines that we, or the physical therapists whom we support, have violated any of the fee-splitting laws or regulations, or if new fee-splitting laws or regulations are enacted, we or the physical therapists whom we support could be subject to civil or criminal penalties, our contracts could be found legally invalid and unenforceable (in whole or in part), or we could be required to restructure our contractual arrangements with our licensed providers of physical therapy (which may not be completed on a timely basis, if at all, and may result in terms materially less favorable to us), all of which may have a material adverse effect on our business.
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We face inspections, reviews, audits and investigations under federal and state government programs and payor contracts. These audits could have adverse findings that may negatively affect our business, including our results of operations, liquidity, financial condition and reputation.
As a result of our participation in the Medicare and Medicaid programs, we are subject to various governmental inspections, reviews, audits, subpoenas and investigations to verify our compliance with these programs and applicable laws and regulations. Payors may also reserve the right to conduct audits. We also periodically conduct reviews of our regulatory compliance. While our facilities intend to comply with the federal requirements for properly billing, coding and documenting claims for reimbursement, there can be no assurance that these audits will determine that all applicable requirements are fully met at the facilities that are reviewed. An adverse inspection, review, audit or investigation could result in:
•refunding amounts we have been paid pursuant to the Medicare or Medicaid programs or from payors;
•state or federal agencies imposing fines, penalties and other sanctions on us;
•temporary suspension of payment for new patients;
•decertification or exclusion from participation in the Medicare or Medicaid programs or one or more payor networks;
•self-disclosure of violations to applicable regulatory authorities;
•damage to our reputation; and
•loss of certain rights under, or termination of, our contracts with payors.
We may be subject to various external governmental investigations, subpoenas, audits and reviews. Certain adverse governmental investigations, subpoenas, audits and reviews may require us to refund amounts we have been paid and/or pay fines and penalties as a result of these inspections, reviews, audits and investigations, which could have a material adverse effect on our business and operating results. Furthermore, the legal, document production and other costs associated with complying with these inspections, reviews, subpoenas, audits or investigations could be significant.
Our facilities are subject to extensive federal and state laws and regulations relating to the privacy of individually identifiable information.
HIPAA required the Health and Human Services Department to adopt standards to protect the privacy and security of individually identifiable health-related information. The privacy regulations extensively regulate the use and disclosure of individually identifiable health-related information. The regulations also provide patients with significant rights related to understanding and controlling how their health information is used or disclosed. The security regulations require healthcare providers to implement administrative, physical and technical practices to protect the security of individually identifiable health information that is maintained or transmitted electronically. The Health Information Technology for Electronic and Clinical Health Act (“HITECH”), which was signed into law in 2009, enhanced the privacy, security and enforcement provisions of HIPAA by, among other things establishing security breach notification requirements, allowing enforcement of HIPAA by state attorneys general and increasing penalties for HIPAA violations. Violations of HIPAA or HITECH could result in civil or criminal penalties.
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In addition to HIPAA, there are numerous federal and state laws and regulations addressing patient and consumer privacy concerns, including unauthorized access or theft of personal information. State statutes and regulations vary from state to state. Lawsuits, including class actions and actions by state attorneys general, directed at companies that have experienced a privacy or security breach also can occur.
We have established policies and procedures in an effort to ensure compliance with these privacy related requirements. However, if there is a breach of these privacy related requirements, we may be subject to various penalties and damages and may be required to incur costs to mitigate the impact of the breach on affected individuals.
Our business may be adversely impacted by healthcare reform efforts, including repeal of or significant modifications to the ACA.
In recent years, Congress and certain state legislatures have considered and passed a number of laws that are intended to result in significant changes to the healthcare industry. However, there is significant uncertainty regarding the future of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (“ACA”), the most prominent of these reform efforts. The law has been subject to legislative and regulatory changes and court challenges, and the prior presidential administration and certain members of Congress have stated their intent to repeal or make additional significant changes to the ACA, its implementation or its interpretation. In 2017, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Acts was enacted, which, effective January 1, 2019, among other things, removed penalties for not complying with ACA’s individual mandate to carry health insurance. Because the penalty associated with the individual mandate was eliminated, a federal judge in Texas ruled in December 2018 that the entire ACA was unconstitutional. On December 18, 2019, the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals upheld the lower court’s finding that the individual mandate is unconstitutional and remanded the case back to the lower court to reconsider its earlier invalidation of the full ACA. On March 2, 2020, the United States Supreme Court (the “Supreme Court”) granted the petitions for writs of certiorari to review this case and on June 17, 2021, the Supreme Court dismissed this case without specifically ruling on the constitutionality of the ACA. These and other efforts to challenge, repeal or replace the ACA may result in reduced funding for state Medicaid programs, lower numbers of insured individuals, and reduced coverage for insured individuals. There is uncertainty regarding whether, when and how the ACA will be further changed or challenged, what alternative provisions, if any, will be enacted, and the impact of alternative provisions on providers and other healthcare industry participants. Government efforts to repeal or change the ACA or to implement alternative reform measures could cause our revenues to decrease to the extent such legislation reduces Medicaid and/or Medicare reimbursement rates.
Our failure to comply with labor and employment laws could result in monetary fines and penalties.
Worker health and safety (OSHA and similar state and local agencies); family medical leave (the Family Medical Leave Act), wage and hour laws and regulations, equal employment opportunity and non-discrimination requirements, among other laws and regulations relating to employment, apply to us. Failure to comply with such laws and regulations could result in the imposition of consent orders or civil and criminal penalties, including fines, which could damage our reputation and have an adverse effect on our results of operations or financial condition. The regulatory framework for privacy issues is rapidly evolving and future enactment of more restrictive laws, rules or regulations and/or future enforcement actions or investigations could have a materially adverse impact on us through increased costs or restrictions on our business, and noncompliance could result in regulatory penalties and significant legal liability.
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There is an inherent risk of liability in the provision of healthcare services; damage to our reputation or our failure to adequately insure against losses, including from substantial claims and litigation, could have an adverse impact on our operations, financial condition or prospects.
From time to time, we are party to legal proceedings, governmental audits and investigations that arise in the ordinary course of our business. There is an inherent risk of liability in the provision of healthcare services. We are also subject to actual and potential claims, lawsuits and investigations outside of the ordinary course of business. Refer to Note 18 - Commitments and Contingencies of our consolidated financial statements included in Part II, Item 8 of this Form 10-K for examples of claims to which we are subject.
Such claims, legal proceedings, governmental audits and investigations may involve large claims and significant costs to defend. In such cases, coverage under our insurance programs would not be adequate to protect us. Additionally, our insurance policies are subject to annual renewal and our insurance premiums could be subject to material increases in the future. We cannot ensure that we will be able to maintain our insurance on acceptable terms in the future, or at all. A successful claim in excess of, or not covered by, our insurance policies could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, cash flow, capital resources and liquidity. Even where our insurance is adequate to cover claims against us, damage to our reputation in the event of a judgment against us, or continued increases in our insurance costs, could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, cash flow, capital resources, liquidity, or prospects.
Risks Relating to Our Human Resources
Our facilities face competition for experienced physical therapists and other clinical providers and clinical staff that may increase labor costs and reduce profitability.
Our ability to retain and attract clinical talent is critical to our ability to provide high quality care to patients and successfully cultivate and maintain strong relationships in the communities we serve. If we cannot recruit and retain our base of experienced and clinically skilled therapists and other clinical providers, management and support personnel, our business may decrease and our revenues may decline and/or operating margins may decrease as a result of higher use of contract labor in difficult to staff markets. We compete with other healthcare providers in recruiting and retaining qualified management, physical therapists and other clinical staff and support personnel responsible for the daily operations of our business, financial condition and results of operations. We have recently experienced elevated rates of attrition when compared to historical levels, which has had and may continue to have adverse effects on our business, financial condition, results of operations, as well as our ability to open new clinics.
As we implement actions aimed to reduce attrition, increase hiring of physical therapists and optimize clinician hours based on available workforce, we expect to experience increases in our labor costs, primarily due to higher wages and greater benefits required to retain and attract qualified healthcare personnel, as well as higher contract labor costs until clinical staffing levels are achieved, and such increases may adversely affect our profitability. Furthermore, while we attempt to manage overall labor costs in the most efficient way, our efforts to manage them may have limited effectiveness and may lead to increased turnover and other challenges.
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Our ability to attract and retain talented executives and corporate employees.
We are dependent on our ability to retain and attract corporate talent. We have recently experienced significant turnover in our senior management team and across our corporate organization. Our business may be adversely affected by the transitions in our senior management team, and turnover at the senior management level may create instability within the Company, which could disrupt and impede our day-to-day operations, internal controls and our ability to fully implement our business plan and initiatives. In addition, management transition inherently causes some loss of institutional knowledge, which can negatively affect strategy and execution, and our results of operations and financial condition could be negatively impacted as a result. We compete for corporate talent within the healthcare industry and more broadly. Competition for such personnel is intense, and we may not be able to attract, assimilate or retain other highly qualified corporate personnel in the future. The inability to attract and retain the necessary personnel could cause increased employee turnover and harm to our business, results of operations, cash flow and financial condition.
We face licensing and credentialing barriers, and associated variability across states is a risk to timely delivery of productive talent.
The scope of licensing laws differs from state to state, and the application of such laws to the activities of physical therapists and other clinical providers is often unclear. Given the nature and scope of the solutions and services that we provide, we are required to maintain physical therapy licenses and registrations for us and our providers in certain jurisdictions and to ensure that such licenses and registrations are in good standing. These licenses require us and our providers to comply with the rules and regulations of the governmental bodies that issued such licenses. Our providers are also required to be credentialed with payors prior to providing services to health plan patients, and completion of the credentialing process, if delayed, may delay our ability to provide services to health plan patients. Our providers’ failure to comply with such rules and regulations could result in significant administrative penalties or the suspension of a license or the loss of a license, as well as credentialing delays, all of which could negatively impact our business.
Risks Relating to Our Information Technology
We rely on information technology in critical areas of our operations, and a disruption relating to such technology could harm our financial condition.
We rely on IT systems in critical areas of our operations, including our electronic medical records system and systems supporting revenue cycle management, and financial and operational reporting, among others. We have legacy IT systems that IT is continuing to upgrade and modernize. If one of these systems were to fail or cause operational or reporting interruptions, or if we decide to change these systems or hire outside parties to provide these systems, we may fail to execute on such system changes or suffer disruptions, which could have a material adverse effect on our operation, results of operations and financial condition. In addition, we may underestimate the costs, complexity and time required to develop and implement new systems.
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We use software vendors and network and cloud providers in our business and if they cannot deliver or perform as expected or if our relationships with them are terminated or otherwise change, it could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Our ability to provide our services and support our operations requires that we work with certain third-party providers, including software vendors and network and cloud providers, and depends on such third-parties meeting our expectations in timeliness, quality, quantity and economics. Our third-party suppliers may be unable to meet such expectations due to a number of factors. We might incur significant additional liabilities if the services provided by these third-parties do not meet our expectations, if they terminate or refuse to renew their relationships with us or if they were to offer their services on less advantageous terms. We rely on internally developed software applications and systems to conduct our critical operating and administrative functions. We also depend on our software vendors to provide long-term software maintenance support for our information systems. In addition, while there are backup systems in many of our operating facilities, we may experience an extended outage of network services supplied by these vendors or providers that could impair our ability to deliver our solutions, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
We are a target of attempted cyber and other security threats and must continuously monitor and develop our IT networks and infrastructure to prevent, detect, address and mitigate the risk of unauthorized access, misuse, computer viruses and other events that could have a security impact or which may cause a violation of HIPAA or HITECH and subject us to potential legal and reputational harm.
In the normal course of business, our IT systems hold sensitive patient information including patient demographic data, eligibility for various medical plans including Medicare and Medicaid and protected health information subject to HIPAA and HITECH. We also contract with third-party vendors to maintain and store our patients’ individually identifiable health information. Numerous state and federal laws and regulations address privacy and information security concerns resulting from our access to our patients’ and employees’ personal information. Additionally, we utilize those same systems to perform our day-to-day activities, such as receiving referrals, assigning clinicians to patients, documenting medical information and maintaining an accurate record of all transactions.
While we have not experienced any known attacks on our IT systems that have compromised patient data, our IT systems and those of our vendors that process, maintain and transmit such data are subject to computer viruses, cyber-attacks, including ransomware attacks, or breaches. We maintain our IT systems with safeguard protection against cyber-attacks including active intrusion protection, firewalls and virus detection software. We adhere to (and require our third-party vendors to adhere to) policies and procedures designed to ensure compliance with HIPAA and HITECH regulations. We have developed and tested a response plan in the event of a successful attack and maintain commercial insurance related to a cyber-attack. However, these safeguards do not ensure that a significant cyber-attack could not occur. A successful attack on our or our third-party vendors’ IT systems could have significant consequences to the business, including liability for compromised patient information, business interruption, significant civil and criminal penalties, lawsuits, reputational harm and increased costs to us, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.
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In addition, insider or employee cyber and security threats are increasingly a concern for all large companies, including us. Our future results could be adversely affected due to the theft, destruction, loss, misappropriation or release of protected health information, other confidential data or proprietary business information, operational or business delays resulting from the disruption of IT systems and subsequent mitigation activities, or regulatory action taken as a result of such incidents. We provide our employees with training and regular reminders on important measures they can take to prevent breaches. We routinely identify attempts to gain unauthorized access to our systems. However, given the rapidly evolving nature and proliferation of cyber threats, there can be no assurance our training and network security measures or other controls will detect, prevent or remediate security or data breaches in a timely manner or otherwise prevent unauthorized access to, damage to, or interruption of our systems and operations. Accordingly, we may be vulnerable to losses associated with the improper functioning, security breach, or unavailability of our information systems, as well as any systems used in acquired company operations.
Risks Relating to Our Accounting and Financial Policies
We currently outsource, and from time to time in the future may outsource, a portion of our internal business functions to third-party providers. Outsourcing these functions has significant risks, and our failure to manage these risks successfully could materially adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.
We currently, and from time to time in the future, may outsource portions of our internal business functions, including billing and administrative functions relating to revenue cycle management, to third-party providers. These third-party providers may not comply on a timely basis with all of our requirements, or may not provide us with an acceptable level of service. In addition, reliance on third-party providers could have significant negative consequences, including significant disruptions in our operations and significantly increased costs to undertake such operations, either of which could damage our relationships with our customers. We could experience a reduction in revenue due to inability to collect from patients, overpayments, claim denials, recoupments or governmental and third-party audits all of which may impact our profitability and cash flow.
If our estimates or judgments relating to our accounting policies prove to be incorrect, our results of operations could be adversely affected.
The preparation of financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported in our consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes included elsewhere in this Form 10-K. The results of these estimates form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets, liabilities and equity, and the amount of revenue and expenses that are not readily apparent from other sources. Significant estimates and judgments used in preparing financial statements include those related to the determination of the revenue transaction price for current transactions and estimation of expected collections on our accounts receivable, assumptions and estimates related to realizability of deferred tax assets, assumptions and estimates related to the valuation of goodwill and intangible assets, among others. Our results of operations may be adversely affected if our assumptions change or if actual circumstances differ from those in our assumptions, which could cause our results of operations to fall below the expectations of securities analysts and investors.
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The IPO Warrants are accounted for as liabilities and the changes in value of the IPO Warrants could have a material effect on our financial results.
The Company accounts for its outstanding Public Warrants and Private Placement Warrants assumed as part of the Business Combination in accordance with the guidance contained in Accounting Standards Codification 815-40, “Derivatives and Hedging - Contracts on an Entity’s Own Equity” (“ASC 815-40”). As such, the IPO Warrants are accounted for as derivative liabilities and are subject to re-measurement at each balance sheet date. Changes in fair value are reported in earnings as a non-cash gain or loss in the Company’s consolidated statements of operations.
As a result of the recurring fair value measurement, our financial statements and results of operations may materially fluctuate quarterly, based on factors which are outside of our control. Due to the recurring fair value measurement, we expect to recognize non-cash gains or losses on the IPO Warrants each reporting period and the amount of such gains or losses could be material and variable.
The Earnout Shares and Vesting Shares are accounted for as liabilities and the changes in value of these shares could have a material effect on our financial results.
We account for the potential Earnout Shares and the Vesting Shares as liabilities in accordance with the guidance in Accounting Standards Codification 480, “Distinguishing Liabilities from Equity,” and 815-40, “Derivatives and Hedging—Contracts on an Entity’s Own Equity,” which provide for the remeasurement of the fair value of such shares at each balance sheet date and changes in fair value are recognized in our statements of operations. As a result of the recurring fair value measurement, our financial statements and results of operations may materially fluctuate quarterly, based on factors which are outside of our control. Due to the recurring fair value measurement, we expect to recognize non-cash gains or losses each reporting period and the amount of such gains or losses could be material and variable.
During 2022 and 2021, we recognized impairments of our goodwill and other intangible assets, which represent a significant portion of our total assets. Any further impairment charges may be material and have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations.
As of December 31, 2022, we had $286.5 million of goodwill and $246.6 million of trade name and other intangible assets recorded on our consolidated balance sheet, excluding amounts reclassified as held for sale. We test such assets for impairment at least annually on the first day of the fourth quarter of each year or on an interim basis whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of the asset may not be recoverable. Impairment may result from, among other things, increased attrition, adverse market conditions, adverse changes in applicable laws or regulations, including changes that affect the services we offer, lower visit volumes, lower revenue reimbursement rates, compressed operating margins and a variety of other factors. The amount of any quantified impairment must be expensed immediately as a charge to results of operations. Depending on future circumstances, it is possible that we may never realize the full value of our intangible assets. Refer to Part II, Item 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations and Note 5 - Goodwill, Trade Name and Other Intangible Assets to our consolidated financial statements included in Part II, Item 8, of this Form 10-K for further discussion of our goodwill and intangible assets.
During 2022, the Company determined that factors primarily driven by potential changes in discount rates and decreases in share price constituted interim triggering events requiring further analysis with respect to potential impairments to goodwill and the trade name intangible asset. Accordingly, we performed interim quantitative impairment testing as of March 31, 2022, June 30, 2022, September 30, 2022 and December 31, 2022, and, as a result thereof, we recorded non-cash impairment charges in the line item goodwill, intangible and other asset impairment charges of $486.3 million in the Company’s consolidated statements of operations during the year ended December 31, 2022. Further impairments of all or part of our goodwill or other identifiable assets may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations.
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Fair value determinations require considerable judgment and are sensitive to changes in underlying assumptions, estimates and market factors. Estimating the fair value of the Company's reporting unit and the indefinite-lived intangible asset requires us to make assumptions and estimates regarding our future plans, as well as industry, economic and regulatory conditions. These assumptions and estimates include projected future revenue growth rates, EBITDA margins, terminal growth rates, discount rates, relevant market multiples, royalty rates and other market factors. If current expectations of future growth rates, margins and cash flows are not met, or if market factors outside of our control change significantly, then our reporting unit or the indefinite-lived intangible asset might become impaired in the future, negatively impacting our operating results and financial position. As the carrying amounts of the Company's goodwill and trade name indefinite-lived intangible asset were impaired during 2022, those amounts are more susceptible to an impairment risk if there are unfavorable changes in assumptions and estimates. To the extent that business conditions deteriorate further, or if changes in key assumptions and estimates differ significantly from management's expectations, it may be necessary to record additional impairment charges in the future.
Our ability to utilize our net operating loss carryforwards and certain other tax attributes may be limited.
We have incurred significant cumulative net taxable losses in the past. Our deferred tax assets as of December 31, 2022 include federal net operating losses, or NOLs, of $68.9 million and state NOLs of $35.5 million. Our unused NOLs generally carry forward to offset future taxable income, if any, until such unused losses expire, if subject to expiration. The earliest net operating loss will expire by statute in 2023 for state net operating losses, and in 2036 for federal net operating losses. We may be unable to use these NOLs to offset income before such unused NOLs expire.
In addition, if a corporation undergoes an “ownership change” (generally defined as a greater than 50 percentage-point cumulative change in the equity ownership of certain stockholders over a rolling three-year period) under Sections 382 and 383 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), the corporation’s ability to use its pre-change NOL carryforwards and other pre-change tax attributes to offset future taxable income or taxes may be limited. This limitation is based in part on the pre-change equity value of the corporation, with a lower equity value resulting in a lower and more severe limitation. We may experience an “ownership change” as a result of future changes in our stock ownership (including the impact of issuance or conversion of new shares, or other transactions or events impacting our stock ownership), some of which changes may not be within our control. If we are unable to use NOL carryforwards before they expire or they become subject to limitation, it could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
If we are unable to remediate the material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting related to income taxes, or if we identify additional material weaknesses in the future or otherwise fail to maintain an effective system of internal control over financial reporting, this may result in material misstatements of our consolidated financial statements or failure to meet our periodic reporting obligations.
Effective internal controls are necessary for us to provide reliable financial reports and prevent fraud. A material weakness is a deficiency, or a combination of deficiencies, in internal control over financial reporting such that there is a reasonable possibility that a material misstatement of our annual or interim financial statements will not be prevented or detected on a timely basis.
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In connection with the preparation of the Company's consolidated financial statements, material weaknesses related to the income tax provision were identified in our internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2021. The Company did not design and maintain an effective control environment commensurate with our financial reporting requirements as we did not maintain a sufficient complement of tax personnel with the appropriate mix of competent resources and financial reporting experience. Additionally, the Company did not design and maintain effective controls related to the income tax provision, including controls related to valuation allowances associated with the realizability of deferred tax assets.
The material weaknesses will not be considered remediated until management completes the remediation plan described in Part II, Item 9A of this Form 10-K, and the enhanced controls operate for a sufficient period of time and management has concluded, through testing, that the related controls are effective. The Company will monitor the effectiveness of its remediation plan and will refine its remediation plan as appropriate.
If we identify any new material weaknesses in the future, any such newly identified material weaknesses could limit our ability to prevent or detect a misstatement of our accounts or disclosures that could result in a material misstatement of our annual or interim financial statements. In such case, we may be unable to maintain compliance with securities law requirements regarding timely filing of periodic reports in addition to applicable stock exchange listing requirements, investors may lose confidence in our financial reporting and our stock price may decline as a result. We cannot assure you that the measures we have taken to date, or any measures we may take in the future, will be sufficient to remediate the Company's material weaknesses related to income taxes or to avoid potential additional future material weaknesses in our internal controls over financial reporting.
Risks Relating to Ownership of Our Common Stock
Our stock price may change significantly and you could lose all or part of your investment as a result.
The trading price of our Common Stock is volatile. You may not be able to resell your shares at an attractive price due to a number of factors such as those listed in “Risks Relating to Our Business and Industry” and the following:
•results of operations that vary from the expectations of securities analysts and investors;
•changes in expectations as to our future financial performance, including financial estimates and investment recommendations by securities analysts and investors or other unexpected adverse developments in our financial results, guidance or other forward-looking information, or industry, geographical or market sector trends;
•declines in the market prices of stocks generally;
•strategic actions by us or our competitors;
•announcements by us or our competitors of significant contracts, acquisitions, joint ventures, other strategic relationships or capital commitments;
•any significant change in our management;
•changes in general economic or market conditions or trends in our industry or markets;
•changes in business or regulatory conditions, including new laws or regulations or new interpretations of existing laws or regulations applicable to our business;
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•future sales of our Common Stock or other securities;
•investor perceptions or the investment opportunity associated with our Common Stock relative to other investment alternatives;
•the public's response to press releases or other public announcements by us or third-parties, including
•our filings with the SEC;
•our liquidity position and the potential risks relating to refinancing, alternative liquidity arrangements or capital transactions;
•failure to comply with covenants related to our debt agreement or our Series A Senior Preferred Stock;
•litigation involving us, our industry, or both, or investigations by regulators into our operations or those of our competitors;
•guidance, if any, that we provide to the public, any changes in this guidance or our failure to meet this guidance;
•the development and sustainability of an active trading market for our stock;
•actions by institutional or activist stockholders;
•changes in accounting standards, policies, guidelines, interpretations or principles; and
•other events or factors, including those resulting from natural disasters, war, acts of terrorism, health pandemics or responses to these events.
These broad market and industry fluctuations may adversely affect the market price of our Common Stock, regardless of our actual operating performance. In addition, price volatility may be greater if the public float and trading volume of our Common Stock is low.
Because there are no current plans to pay cash dividends on our Common Stock for the foreseeable future, you are unlikely to receive any return on investment unless you sell your Common Stock for a price greater than that which you paid for it.
We intend to retain future earnings, if any, for future operations, expansion and debt repayment and there are no current plans to pay any cash dividends for the foreseeable future. The declaration, amount and payment of any future dividends on shares of our Common Stock will be at the sole discretion of our Board. We have no direct operations and no significant assets other than our ownership of our subsidiaries from whom we will depend on for distributions, and whose ability to pay dividends may be limited by covenants of our current and any future indebtedness we or our subsidiaries incur. As a result, you are unlikely to receive any return on an investment in our Common Stock unless you sell our Common Stock for a price greater than that which you paid for it.
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If securities analysts do not publish research or reports about our business or if they downgrade our stock or our sector, our stock price and trading volume could decline.
The trading market for our Common Stock will rely in part on the research and reports that industry or financial analysts publish about us or our business. We will not control these analysts. In addition, some financial analysts may have limited expertise with our model and operations. Furthermore, if one or more of the analysts who do cover us downgrade our stock or industry, or the stock of any of our competitors, or publish inaccurate or unfavorable research about our business, the price of our stock could decline. If one or more of these analysts ceases coverage of us or fails to publish reports on us regularly, we could lose visibility in the market, which in turn could cause our stock price or trading volume to decline.
Future issuances or sales, or the perception of future issuances or sales, by us or our stockholders of Common Stock or other voting securities or securities convertible into or exchangeable for our Common Stock in the public market or otherwise could cause the market price for our Common Stock to decline.
The issuance or sale of shares of Common Stock or other voting securities or securities convertible into or exchangeable for shares of Common Stock in the public market or otherwise, or the perception that such issuances or sales could occur, could harm the prevailing market price of shares of Common Stock. These issuances or sales, or the possibility that these issuances or sales may occur, also might make it more difficult for us to sell equity securities in the future at a time and at a price that the Company deems appropriate.
The Common Stock reserved for future issuance under our equity incentive plans will become eligible for sale in the public market once those shares are issued, subject to provisions relating to various vesting agreements, lock-up agreements and, in some cases, limitations on volume and manner of sale applicable to affiliates under Rule 144. As of December 31, 2022, the aggregate number of shares of Common Stock reserved for future issuance under our equity incentive plans is 10.9 million. The compensation committee of our Board may determine the exact number of shares to be reserved for future issuance under our equity incentive plans at its discretion. We have filed a registration statement on Form S-8 under the Securities Act to register shares of Common Stock issuable pursuant to our equity incentive plans and, accordingly, such shares are available for sale in the open market.
In addition, the exchange of some or all of the Second Lien PIK Exchangeable Notes that may be issued in the future as contemplated by the TSA would dilute the ownership interests and voting rights of the Company’s existing stockholders, as we would be required to deliver shares of Common Stock to the exchanging noteholders with respect to any principal upon exchange of any of the Second Lien PIK Exchangeable Notes. Pursuant to the TSA, when issued, the Second Lien PIK Exchangeable Notes would be exchangeable at the option of their holders prior to their maturity. Prior to any such exchange, the holders of the Second Lien PIK Exchangeable Notes would have the right to vote on corporate matters on an as-exchanged basis. Any sales in the public market of the shares of Common Stock issuable upon such exchange could adversely affect prevailing market prices of our Common Stock. In addition, the anticipated exchange of the Second Lien PIK Exchangeable Notes into shares of our Common Stock could depress the price of our Common Stock. There is no assurance that the transactions contemplated by the TSA will be consummated on the terms as described above, on a timely basis or at all.
In the future, we may also issue our securities in connection with investments or acquisitions. The amount of shares of Common Stock issued in connection with an investment or acquisition could constitute a material portion of our then-outstanding shares of Common Stock. Any issuance of additional securities in connection with investments or acquisitions may result in additional dilution to ATI’s stockholders.
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We may redeem unexpired IPO Warrants prior to their exercise at a time that is disadvantageous to the warrantholders, thereby making such warrantholders’ warrants worthless.
We have the ability to redeem outstanding IPO Warrants prior to their expiration, at a price of $0.01 per warrant, provided that the last reported sales price of the Common Stock equals or exceeds $18.00 per share for any 20 trading days within a 30 trading-day period ending on the third trading day prior to the date we give notice of redemption. Redemption of the outstanding IPO Warrants could force warrantholders to (i) exercise the IPO Warrants and pay the exercise price therefor at a time when it may be disadvantageous to do so, (ii) sell the IPO Warrants at the then-current market price when the warrantholder might otherwise wish to hold onto such IPO Warrants or (iii) accept the nominal redemption price which, at the time the outstanding IPO Warrants are called for redemption, is likely to be substantially less than the market value of the IPO Warrants. None of the Private Placement Warrants will be redeemable by us so long as they are held by their initial purchasers or their permitted transferees.
In addition, we may redeem the IPO Warrants after they become exercisable for a number of shares of Common Stock determined based on the redemption date and the fair market value of our Common Stock. Any such redemption may have similar consequences to a cash redemption described above.
If we are unable to maintain compliance with New York Stock Exchange ("NYSE") listing standards, our securities may be delisted, which could negatively impact the price of our securities and your ability to sell them.
In order to maintain our listing on the NYSE, we are required to comply with certain rules and listing standards of the NYSE, including those regarding minimum stockholders' equity, minimum share price, minimum market value of publicly held shares and various additional requirements. The NYSE has notified the Company that, due to the average closing price of the Company's Common Stock, it was below the trading price criteria of the exchange. The notice has no immediate impact on the listing of the Company's Common Stock on the NYSE, subject to the Company's compliance with the NYSE's other continued listing requirements. The Company has submitted a plan of compliance to the NYSE addressing how we intend to regain compliance. If we are unable to satisfy the NYSE rules and listing standards, or are unable to make progress on our plan of compliance, our securities could be subject to delisting.
If the NYSE were to delist our securities from trading, we could face significant consequences, including:
•a limited availability for market quotations for our securities;
•reduced liquidity with respect to our securities;
•a determination that our Common Stock is a "penny stock," which will require brokers trading in our Common Stock to adhere to more stringent rules and possibly result in a reduced level of trading activity in the secondary trading market for our Common Stock;
•limited amount of news and analyst coverage; and
•a decreased ability to issue additional securities or obtain additional financing in the future.
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Anti-takeover provisions in our organizational documents could delay or prevent a change of control.
Certain provisions of our Second Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation and Amended and Restated Bylaws may have an anti-takeover effect and may delay, defer or prevent a merger, acquisition, tender offer, takeover attempt or other change of control transaction deemed undesirable by our Board that a stockholder might consider in its best interest, including those attempts that might result in a premium over the market price for the shares held by our stockholders.
These provisions provide for, among other things:
•there is no cumulative voting with respect to the election of our Board;
•the division of our Board into three classes, with only one class of directors being elected in each year;
•the ability of our Board to issue one or more series of preferred stock;
•advance notice for nominations of directors by stockholders and for stockholders to include matters to be considered at our annual meetings;
•certain limitations on convening special stockholder meetings;
•limiting the ability of stockholders to act by written consent;
•the ability of our Board to fill a vacancy created by the expansion of our Board or the resignation, death or removal of a director in certain circumstances;
•providing that our Board is expressly authorized to adopt, amend, alter or repeal our bylaws;
•the removal of directors only for cause; and
•that certain provisions may be amended only by the affirmative vote of at least 65% (for amendments to the indemnification provisions) or 66.7% (for amendments to the provisions relating to the board of directors) of the shares of our Common Stock entitled to vote generally in the election of our directors.
These anti-takeover provisions could make it more difficult for a third-party to acquire us, even if the third-party’s offer may be considered beneficial by many of our stockholders. As a result, our stockholders may be limited in their ability to obtain a premium for their shares. These provisions could also discourage proxy contests and make it more difficult for you and other stockholders to elect directors of your choosing and to cause us to take other corporate actions you desire. In addition, because we are incorporated in Delaware, we are governed by the provisions of Section 203 of the Delaware General Corporation Law (“DGCL”), which generally prohibits a Delaware corporation from engaging in any of a broad range of business combinations with any “interested” stockholder for a period of three years following the date on which the stockholder became an “interested” stockholder.
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Our Amended and Restated Bylaws designate the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware as the sole and exclusive forum for certain types of actions and proceedings that may be initiated by our stockholders, which could limit our stockholders’ ability to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with us or our directors, officers, employees or stockholders.
Our Amended and Restated Bylaws provide that, subject to limited exceptions, any (i) derivative action or proceeding brought on our behalf, (ii) action asserting a claim of breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any director, officer, stockholder or employee to us or our stockholders, (iii) action asserting a claim arising pursuant to any provision of the DGCL, our Second Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation or our Amended and Restated Bylaws or (iv) action asserting a claim governed by the internal affairs doctrine shall, to the fullest extent permitted by law, be exclusively brought in the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware ("Delaware Court of Chancery" or the "Court of Chancery") or, if such court does not have subject matter jurisdiction thereof, another state or federal court located within the State of Delaware. Our Amended and Restated Bylaws also provide that, to the fullest extent permitted by law, the federal district courts of the United States will be the exclusive forum for resolving any complaint asserting a cause of action arising under the Securities Act. Any person or entity purchasing or otherwise acquiring any interest in shares of our capital stock shall be deemed to have notice of and to have consented to the provisions of the Amended and Restated Bylaws described above. This choice of forum provision may limit a stockholder’s ability to bring a claim in a judicial forum that it finds favorable for disputes with us or our directors, officers or other employees, which may discourage such lawsuits against us and our directors, officers and employees. This exclusive forum provision does not apply to claims under the Exchange Act but does apply to other state and federal law claims including actions arising under the Securities Act. Section 22 of the Securities Act, however, creates concurrent jurisdiction for federal and state courts over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Securities Act or the rules and regulations thereunder. Accordingly, there is uncertainty as to whether a court would enforce such a forum selection provision as written in connection with claims arising under the Securities Act, and investors cannot waive compliance with the federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder. If a court were to find these provisions of our Amended and Restated Bylaws inapplicable to, or unenforceable in respect of, one or more of the specified types of actions or proceedings, we may incur additional costs associated with resolving such matters in other jurisdictions, which could adversely affect our business and financial condition.
A recent decision of the Delaware Court of Chancery may create uncertainty regarding the validity of some of our authorized and issued shares of Common Stock.
On March 2, 2023, we filed a petition in the Delaware Court of Chancery pursuant to Section 205 of the DGCL, seeking validation of an amendment to our certificate of incorporation increasing the authorized shares of our Class A Common Stock (as further described below) and the shares issued pursuant thereto.
At a special meeting of the stockholders of the Company held on June 15, 2021 (the “Special Meeting”), a majority of the then-outstanding shares of the Company’s Class A Common Stock and Class F Common Stock, voting together as a single class, voted to approve the Company’s Second Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, which, among other things, increased the authorized shares of the Company’s Class A Common Stock from 200,000,000 shares to 450,000,000 shares (the “Class A Increase Amendment”). Notwithstanding the fact that the proxy statement relating to the Special Meeting did not disclose that a separate vote of the Class A Common Stock was required, a majority of the then-outstanding shares of Class A Common Stock voted in favor of the Class A Increase Amendment.
A recent decision of the Court of Chancery has created uncertainty regarding the validity of the Class A Increase Amendment and whether a separate vote of the majority of the then-outstanding shares of Class A Common Stock would have been required under Section 242(b)(2) of the DGCL.
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The Company continues to believe that a separate vote of Class A Common Stock was not required to approve the Class A Increase Amendment. However, in light of the recent Court of Chancery decision, the Company filed a petition in the Court of Chancery pursuant to Section 205 of the DGCL seeking validation of the Class A Increase Amendment and the shares issued pursuant thereto to resolve any uncertainty with respect to those matters. Section 205 of the DGCL permits the Court of Chancery, in its discretion, to validate potentially defective corporate acts and stock after considering a variety of factors.
While the Company believes that a separate vote of Class A Common Stock was not required to approve the Class A Increase Amendment at the Special Meeting, and therefore that all of the currently outstanding shares of Class A Common Stock of the Company are validly issued, if the Company is not successful in the Section 205 proceeding, the uncertainty with respect to the Company’s capitalization resulting from the Court of Chancery’s decision referenced above could have a material adverse effect on the Company, including its ability to complete financing transactions, until the underlying issues are definitively resolved.
On March 3, 2023, the Court of Chancery granted the motion to expedite and set a hearing date for the petition to be heard. The hearing has been set for March 17, 2023.
As a “controlled company” within the meaning of NYSE listing standards, we qualify for exemptions from certain corporate governance requirements. We have the opportunity to elect any of the exemptions afforded a controlled company.
Because Advent International Corporation (“Advent”) controls more than a majority of our total voting power, we are a “controlled company” within the meaning of NYSE Listing Standards. Under NYSE rules, a company of which more than 50% of the voting power is held by another person or group of persons acting together is a “controlled company” and may elect not to comply with the following NYSE rules regarding corporate governance:
•the requirement that a majority of its board of directors consist of independent directors;
•the requirement that compensation of its executive officers be determined by a majority of the independent directors of the board or a compensation committee comprised solely of independent directors with a written charter addressing the committee's purpose and responsibilities; and
•the requirement that director nominees be selected, or recommended for the board's selection, either by a majority of the independent directors of the board or a nominating committee comprised solely of independent directors with a written charter addressing the committee's purpose and responsibilities.
We are utilizing the benefits of a controlled company currently but remain subject to and comply with the requirements that our independent directors hold regular executive sessions and that our audit committee consists entirely of independent directors.
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Advent has significant influence over us.
As of December 31, 2022, Advent beneficially owns approximately 56.1% of our Common Stock. As long as Advent owns or controls a significant percentage of our outstanding voting power, it will have the ability to significantly influence all corporate actions requiring stockholder approval, including the election and removal of directors and the size of our Board, any amendment to our certificate of incorporation or bylaws, or the approval of any merger or other significant corporate transaction, including a sale of substantially all of our assets. Advent’s influence over our management could have the effect of delaying or preventing a change in control or otherwise discouraging a potential acquirer from attempting to obtain control of us, which could cause the market price of our Common Stock to decline or prevent stockholders from realizing a premium over the market price for our Common Stock.
Advent’s interests may not align with our interests as a company or the interests of our other stockholders. Accordingly, Advent could cause us to enter into transactions or agreements of which other stockholders would not approve or make decisions with which other stockholders would disagree. Further, Advent is in the business of making investments in companies and may acquire and hold interests in businesses that compete directly or indirectly with us. Advent may also pursue acquisition opportunities that may be complementary to our business, and, as a result, those acquisition opportunities may not be available to us. In recognition that partners, members, directors, employees, stockholders, agents and successors of Advent and its successors and affiliates and any of their respective managed investment funds and portfolio companies may serve as our directors or officers, the Second Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation provides, among other things, that none of Advent or any partners, members, directors, employees, stockholders, agents or successors of Advent and its successors and affiliates and any of their respective managed investment funds and portfolio companies has any duty to refrain from engaging directly or indirectly in the same or similar business activities or lines of business that we do (except as otherwise expressly provided in any agreement entered into between us and such exempted person). In the event that any of these persons or entities acquires knowledge of a potential transaction or matter which may be a corporate opportunity for itself and us, we will not have any expectancy in such corporate opportunity, and these persons and entities will not have any duty to communicate or offer such corporate opportunity to us and may pursue or acquire such corporate opportunity for themselves or direct such opportunity to another person. These potential conflicts of interest could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations if, among other things, attractive corporate opportunities are allocated by Advent to themselves or their other affiliates.
There is currently no market for our Series I Warrants and Series II Warrants and a market for our Series I Warrants and Series II Warrants may not develop, which would adversely affect the liquidity and price of our Series I Warrants and Series II Warrants.
Our Series I Warrants and Series II Warrants are not listed or traded on any stock exchange and there is currently no market for our Series I Warrants and Series II Warrants. Warrantholders therefore have no access to trading price or volume information about prior market history on which to base their investment decision. Furthermore, an active trading market for our Series I Warrants and Series II Warrants may never develop or, if developed, it may not be sustained. You may be unable to sell your Series I Warrants and Series II Warrants unless a market can be established and sustained.
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Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments
None.
Item 2. Properties
As of December 31, 2022, we have 923 clinics (as well as 20 clinics under management service agreements) located in 25 states. We lease all of the properties used for our clinics under operating leases with initial lease terms typically ranging from seven (7) to ten (10) years with options to renew. We intend to lease the premises for any new clinic locations. Our typical clinic occupies approximately 1,000 to 5,000 square feet.
We also lease our executive offices located in Bolingbrook, Illinois, under an operating lease expiring in December 2032. We currently lease approximately 135,000 square feet of space at our corporate offices.
Item 3. Legal Proceedings
From time to time, the Company may be involved in legal proceedings or subject to claims arising in the ordinary course of business. The outcome of any litigation and claims against the Company cannot be predicted with certainty, and the resolution of these matters could materially affect our future results of operations, cash flows, or financial condition. Refer to Note 18 - Commitments and Contingencies in the consolidated financial statements included in Part II, Item 8, of this Form 10-K for further details.
Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures
Not applicable.
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PART II
Item 5. Market for Registrant's Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
Market Information and Holders
Our Class A common stock and Public Warrants are currently listed on the New York Stock Exchange ("NYSE") under the symbols "ATIP" and "ATIP WS," respectively. As of March 6, 2023, there were approximately 229 holders of record of our outstanding common stock.
Dividends
We have not paid any cash dividends on our Class A common stock to date. We currently intend to retain any future earnings to finance the operations of our business and do not expect to pay any dividends in the foreseeable future. Any decision to declare and pay dividends in the future will be made at the discretion of our board of directors, and will depend upon our results of operations, financial condition, capital requirements and other factors that our board of directors may deem relevant. In addition, our ability to pay dividends may be limited by covenants of any existing and future outstanding indebtedness we or our subsidiaries incur.
Securities Authorized for Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans
Refer to Note 10 - Share-Based Compensation in the consolidated financial statements for information regarding securities authorized for issuance under our equity compensation plans.
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Stock Performance Graph
The following graph compares the cumulative total return to stockholders from the closing price on June 17, 2021 (the date our Class A common stock began trading on the NYSE following the Business Combination) through December 31, 2022, relative to the performance of the NYSE Composite Index and the NYSE Health Care Index. The stock performance graph assumes $100 was invested in our Class A common stock and the common stock of each of the companies listed on the NYSE Composite Index and the NYSE Health Care Index on June 17, 2021, and that any dividends were reinvested.
Recent Sales of Unregistered Securities
On February 24, 2022, the Company entered into a Series A Senior Preferred Stock Purchase Agreement with the purchasers signatory thereto, including funds affiliated with Knighthead Capital Management, LLC (the “Investors”), pursuant to which the Investors purchased from the Company, in the aggregate, 165,000 shares of Series A Senior Preferred Stock with an initial stated value of $1,000 per share, or $165,000,000 of stated value in the aggregate, and warrants to purchase up to 11,498,401 shares of common stock of the Company, for an aggregate purchase price of $163,350,000 (“Preferred Stock Financing Proceeds”). Each warrant entitles the holder to purchase one share of the Company's Class A common stock. The warrants are exercisable within 5 years from issuance. The strike price is $3.00 per share for 5,226,546 of the issued warrants, and the strike price is $0.01 per share for 6,271,855 of the issued warrants. The Preferred Stock Financing Proceeds reflected an original issue discount of 1.0% of the stated value of the Series A Senior Preferred Stock. The Company used the Preferred Stock Financing Proceeds to refinance a portion of its existing indebtedness for borrowed money of the Company and its applicable subsidiaries, with remaining cash to the Company’s balance sheet. The Series A Senior Preferred Stock and warrants were not registered under the Securities Act, and were issued in reliance on the exemption from registration requirements thereof provided by Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act and/or Regulation D promulgated thereunder as a transaction by an issuer not involving a public offering without any form of general solicitation or general advertising.
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Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
During the three months ended December 31, 2022, the Company withheld shares of our common stock in connection with employee minimum statutory tax withholding obligations payable upon the vesting of restricted stock, as follows:
Total Number of Shares Purchased(1) | Average Price Paid Per Share | Total Number of Shares Purchased as Part of Publicly Announced Plans or Programs | Maximum Number of Shares that May Yet Be Purchased Under the Plans of Programs | ||||||||||||||||||||
| October 1 - October 31, 2022 | — | $ | — | — | — | ||||||||||||||||||
| November 1 - November 30, 2022 | 17,406 | $ | 0.51 | — | — | ||||||||||||||||||
| December 1 - December 31, 2022 | 4,130 | $ | 0.31 | — | — | ||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 21,536 | $ | 0.47 | — | — | ||||||||||||||||||
(1) Represents shares delivered to or withheld by us in connection with employee minimum tax withholding obligations upon exercise or vesting of stock awards. No shares were purchased in the open market pursuant to a repurchase program.
Item 6. [Reserved]
Not applicable.
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Item 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
The following discussion and analysis of ATI Physical Therapy, Inc. and its subsidiaries (herein referred to as “we,” ”us,” “the Company,” “our Company,” or "ATI") should be read in conjunction with the Company’s consolidated financial statements and related notes thereto included elsewhere in this Annual Report. For management's discussion and analysis on the Company's financial condition and results of operations for the year ended December 31, 2021 compared to the year ended December 31, 2020, refer to "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on March 1, 2022.
We make statements in this discussion that are forward-looking and involve risks and uncertainties. These statements contain forward-looking information relating to the financial condition, results of operations, plans, objectives, future performance and business of the Company. The forward-looking statements are based on our current views and assumptions, and actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements due to factors including, but not limited to, those discussed under “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” and Part I, Item 1A. “Risk Factors.”
Many factors are beyond our control. Given these uncertainties, you should not place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements. Our forward-looking statements represent our estimates and assumptions only as of the date of this Annual Report. Except as required by law, we are under no obligation to update any forward-looking statement, regardless of the reason the statement may no longer be accurate.
Certain amounts in this Management's Discussion and Analysis may not add due to rounding. All percentages have been calculated using unrounded amounts for the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020.
All dollar amounts are presented in thousands, unless indicated otherwise.
Company Overview
We are a nationally recognized outpatient physical therapy provider in the United States specializing in outpatient rehabilitation and adjacent healthcare services, with 923 clinics (as well as 20 clinics under management service agreements) located in 25 states as of December 31, 2022. We operate with a commitment to providing our patients, medical provider partners, payors and employers with evidence-based, patient-centric care.
We offer a variety of services within our clinics, including physical therapy to treat spine, shoulder, knee and neck injuries or pain; work injury rehabilitation services, including work conditioning and work hardening; hand therapy; and other specialized treatment services. Our Company’s team of professionals is dedicated to helping return patients to optimal physical health.
Physical therapy patients receive team-based care, leading-edge techniques and individualized treatment plans in an encouraging environment. To achieve optimal results, we use an extensive array of techniques including therapeutic exercise, manual therapy and strength training, among others. Our physical therapy model aims to deliver optimized outcomes and time to recovery for patients, insights and service satisfaction for referring providers and predictable costs and measurable value for payors.
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In addition to providing services to physical therapy patients at outpatient rehabilitation clinics, we provide services through our ATI Worksite Solutions (“AWS”) program, Management Service Agreements (“MSA”) and Sports Medicine arrangements. AWS provides an on-site team of healthcare professionals at employer worksites to promote work-related injury prevention, facilitate expedient and appropriate return-to-work follow-up and maintain the health and well-being of the workforce. Our MSA arrangements typically include the Company providing management and physical therapy-related services to physician-owned physical therapy clinics. Sports Medicine arrangements provide certified healthcare professionals to various schools, universities and other institutions to perform on-site physical therapy and rehabilitation services.
Appointment of Chief Executive Officer
On April 28, 2022, the Company appointed Sharon Vitti as its Chief Executive Officer and to the Board of Directors. Ms. Vitti has 30 years of healthcare experience, including nearly two decades of executive leadership in clinical and consumer-focused healthcare companies.
In connection with Ms. Vitti’s appointment, John (Jack) Larsen stepped down as Executive Chairman of the Company, effective April 28, 2022 and continued in his role as Chairman of the Board of the Company. Mr. Larsen was appointed Executive Chairman of the Company on August 9, 2021. In addition, effective April 28, 2022, John (Jack) Larsen, Joseph Jordan, the Company’s Chief Financial Officer, and Ray Wahl, the Company’s former Chief Operating Officer, no longer fulfilled the role of Principal Executive Officer.
Recent changes in company leadership
Effective July 8, 2022, Joe Zavalishin, Chief Development Officer, resigned from the Company. The Company and Mr. Zavalishin entered into a mutual release pursuant to which Mr. Zavalishin is eligible for the payments and benefits in accordance with his employment agreement.
Effective August 29, 2022, the Company appointed Eimile Tansey as its Chief People Officer. Ms. Tansey has more than 20 years of experience in human resources and operations, including more than 15 years in leadership and executive roles.
Effective November 4, 2022, Diana Chafey, Chief Legal Officer and Corporate Secretary, resigned from the Company. The Company appointed Erik Kantz as the Company's Chief Legal Officer and Corporate Secretary effective November 4, 2022. Mr. Kantz previously served as Vice President and Deputy General Counsel of the Company, and has over 20 years of experience in corporate and securities law.
Effective December 16, 2022, Ray Wahl, Chief Operating Officer, resigned from the Company. The Company and Mr. Wahl entered into a mutual release pursuant to which Mr. Wahl is eligible for the payments and benefits in accordance with his employment agreement. The Company appointed Chris Cox as the Company's Chief Operating Officer effective December 16, 2022. Mr. Cox has nearly 15 years of progressively higher-level leadership positions in the healthcare industry.
Effective January 3, 2023, the Company appointed Scott Gregerson as the Company's Chief Growth Officer. Mr. Gregerson has 20 years of healthcare experience including chief executive, presidential and vice-presidential roles in which he developed and led strategic business development and growth, often connecting large-scale provider groups with hospital and health systems.
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2022 Debt Refinancing and Preferred Stock Financing
On February 24, 2022, the Company entered into various financing arrangements to refinance its existing long-term debt (the "2022 Debt Refinancing"). The Company entered into a new 2022 Credit Agreement which is comprised of a senior secured term loan which matures on February 24, 2028, and a "super priority" senior secured revolver, which matures on February 24, 2027. Refer to Note 8 - Borrowings in the consolidated financial statements for further details.
In connection with the 2022 Debt Refinancing, the Company issued shares of non-convertible preferred stock and warrants to purchase shares of the Company's common stock. Refer to Note 11 - Mezzanine and Stockholders' Equity in the consolidated financial statements for further details.
The Business Combination
On June 16, 2021 (the “Closing Date”), a Business Combination transaction (the “Business Combination”) was finalized pursuant to the Agreement and Plan of Merger ("Merger Agreement"), dated February 21, 2021 between the operating company, Wilco Holdco, Inc. (“Wilco Holdco”), and Fortress Value Acquisition Corp. II (herein referred to as "FAII" and "FVAC"), a special purpose acquisition company. In connection with the closing of the Business Combination, the Company changed its name from Fortress Value Acquisition Corp. II to ATI Physical Therapy, Inc. The Business Combination was accounted for as a reverse recapitalization in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP"). The Company’s common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange ("NYSE") under the symbol “ATIP.” Refer to Note 3 - Business Combinations and Divestitures in the consolidated financial statements for further details.
Home Health divestiture
On October 1, 2021, the Company divested its Home Health service line for a sale price of $7.3 million. The major classes of assets and liabilities associated with the Home Health service line consisted predominantly of accounts receivable, accrued expenses and other liabilities which were not material.
2021 acquisitions
During the fourth quarter of 2021, the Company completed 3 acquisitions consisting of 7 total clinics. The Company paid approximately $4.5 million in cash and $1.4 million in future payment consideration, subject to certain time or performance conditions set out in the purchase agreements, to complete the acquisitions.
Trends and Factors Affecting the Company’s Future Performance and Comparability of Results
During 2022, we observed the following trends in our operations:
•Improved referral and patient visit volumes relative to the comparative periods in 2021 and relative to volume softness experienced during the beginning of 2022 which was driven, in part, by an increase in COVID-19 cases due to the outbreak of additional variants.
•A continued tight labor market for available physical therapy and other healthcare providers in the workforce, contributing to competition in hiring, attrition, clinical staffing level challenges, increased use of contract labor and continued wage inflation in the physical therapy industry and at ATI.
•Decrease in rate per visit primarily driven by Medicare rate cuts that became effective on January 1, 2022, Medicare sequestration reductions that began after March 31, 2022 and June 30, 2022 and less favorable payor and state mix when compared to prior periods.
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Our ability to achieve our business plan depends upon a number of factors, including, but not limited to, the success of a number of continued steps being taken related to increasing clinical staffing levels, increasing clinician productivity, controlling costs and capital expenditures, increasing visit volumes and referrals and stabilizing rate per visit.
During the year ended December 31, 2022, the Company identified interim triggering events as a result of factors including potential changes in discount rates and decreases in share price. The Company determined that the combination of these factors constituted interim triggering events that required further analysis with respect to potential impairment to goodwill, trade name indefinite-lived intangible and other assets. Accordingly, the Company performed interim quantitative impairment testing as of March 31, 2022, June 30, 2022, September 30, 2022 and December 31, 2022 and determined that the fair value amounts were below the respective carrying amounts. As a result, the Company recorded non-cash impairment charges of $318.9 million related to goodwill and $164.4 million related to the trade name indefinite-lived intangible asset during the year ended December 31, 2022. Refer to Note 5 - Goodwill, Trade Name and Other Intangible Assets in the consolidated financial statements for further details.
COVID-19 pandemic and volume impacts
The coronavirus ("COVID-19") pandemic in the United States resulted in changes to our operating environment. We continue to closely monitor the impact of COVID-19 on all aspects of our business, and our priorities remain protecting the health and safety of employees and patients, maximizing the availability of services to satisfy patient needs, and improving the operational and financial stability of our business.
As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, visits per day ("VPD") decreased to a low point of 12,643 during the quarter ended June 30, 2020. The Company has experienced relative increases in quarterly VPD following the low point, as local restrictions in certain markets, referral levels and individual routines evolved compared to prior periods. During the fourth quarter of 2021, we observed volume softness caused, in part, by an increase in COVID-19 cases due to the outbreak of additional variants, which continued to impact visit volumes in the beginning of 2022. Through the remainder of the first quarter of 2022 and the second quarter of 2022, we experienced increases in visit volumes relative to the beginning of 2022. Additionally, while we observed volume softness during the third quarter due, in part, to seasonality, we experienced increases in quarterly VPD through the fourth quarter of 2022 relative to the comparative quarters in 2021.
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The chart below reflects the quarterly trend in VPD.
As demand for physical therapy services has increased in the market since its low point during the quarter ended June 30, 2020, the Company has focused on attempting to increase its clinical staffing levels by hiring clinicians, optimizing clinician hours based on available workforce and attempting to reduce levels of clinician attrition that have been elevated relative to historical levels. The elevated levels of attrition were initially caused, in part, by changes made during the COVID-19 pandemic related to compensation, staffing levels and support for clinicians. We have implemented a range of actions related to compensation, staffing levels, clinical and professional development and other initiatives in an effort to retain and attract therapists across our platform, which has increased our current and future expectations for labor costs. While the Company has observed improvement in hiring and attrition levels since implementing these actions, attrition remains above historical levels due to a continued tight labor market for available physical therapy and other healthcare providers in the workforce which may impede our progress toward increasing visit volumes. In an effort to drive more volume and visits per day, in addition to focusing on clinical staffing levels and clinician productivity, we are working to establish relationships with new referral sources and strengthen relationships with our partner providers and existing referral sources across our geographic footprint.
The COVID-19 pandemic is still evolving and the full extent of its future impact remains unknown and difficult to predict. The future impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our performance will depend on certain developments, including the duration and spread of the virus and its newly identified strains, effectiveness and adoption rates of vaccines and other therapeutic remedies, the potential for continued or reinstated restrictive policies enforced by federal, state and local governments, and the impact of the virus and vaccination requirements on our workforce, all of which create uncertainty and cannot be predicted. While we expect the disruption caused by COVID-19 and resulting impacts to diminish over time, we cannot predict the length of such impacts, and if such impacts continue for an extended period, it could have a continued effect on the Company’s results of operations, financial condition and cash flows, which could be material.
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CARES Act
On March 27, 2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (the “CARES Act") was signed into law providing reimbursement, grants, waivers and other funds to assist health care providers during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Company has realized benefits under the CARES Act including, but not limited to, the following:
•In 2020, the Company received approximately $91.5 million of general distribution payments under the Provider Relief Fund. These payments have been recognized in other expense (income), net in the consolidated statements of operations throughout 2020 in a manner commensurate with the reporting and eligibility requirements issued by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services ("HHS"). Based on the terms and conditions of the program, including reporting guidance issued by HHS in 2021, the Company believes that it has met the applicable terms and conditions. This includes, but is not limited to, the fact that the Company’s COVID-19 related expenses and lost revenues for the year ended December 31, 2020 exceeded the amount of funds received. To the extent that reporting requirements and terms and conditions are subsequently modified, it may affect the Company’s ability to comply and ability to retain the funds.
•The Company applied for and obtained approval to receive $26.7 million of Medicare Accelerated and Advance Payment Program ("MAAPP") funds during the quarter ended June 30, 2020. During the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, the Company applied $12.3 million and $12.6 million in MAAPP funds against the outstanding liability, respectively. During the year ended December 31, 2021, the Company transferred $1.8 million in MAAPP funds as part of the divestiture of its Home Health Service line. During the quarter ended September 30, 2022, the Company met the required performance obligations and performed the remaining services related to the MAAPP funds. Therefore, the remaining funds were applied and repaid during the quarter ended September 30, 2022. As of December 31, 2022 and December 31, 2021, zero and $12.3 million of the funds are recorded in accrued expenses and other liabilities, respectively.
•The Company elected to defer depositing the employer portion of Social Security taxes for payments due from March 27, 2020 through December 31, 2020, interest-free and penalty-free. The Company repaid the remaining deferred payments during the fourth quarter of 2022. Related to these payments, as of December 31, 2022 and December 31, 2021, zero and $5.9 million is included in accrued expenses and other liabilities, respectively.
Market and industry trends and factors
•Outpatient physical therapy services growth. Outpatient physical therapy continues to play a key role in treating musculoskeletal conditions for patients. According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services ("CMS"), musculoskeletal conditions impact individuals of all ages and include some of the most common health issues in the U.S. As healthcare trends in the U.S. continue to evolve, with a growing focus on value-based care emphasizing up-front, conservative care to deliver better outcomes, quality healthcare services addressing such conditions in lower cost outpatient settings may continue increasing in prevalence.
•U.S. population demographics. The population of adults aged 65 and older in the U.S. is expected to continue to grow and thus expand the Company’s market opportunity. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the population of adults over the age of 65 is expected to grow 30% from 2020 through 2030.
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•Federal funding for Medicare and Medicaid. Federal and state funding of Medicare and Medicaid and the terms of access to these reimbursement programs affect demand for physical therapy services. In recent years, through legislative and regulatory actions, the federal government has made substantial changes to various payment systems under the Medicare program. Beginning in January 2022, the physical therapy industry observed a reduction of Medicare reimbursement rates of approximately 0.75%, as well as a 15% decrease in payments for services performed by physical therapy assistants. Additionally, a further reduction through resuming sequestration was postponed. Sequestration reductions resumed at 1% after March 31, 2022, and by an additional 1% after June 30, 2022, which resulted in an overall reduction of 2% in reimbursement rates related to sequestration after June 30, 2022. In July 2022, the CMS released its proposed 2023 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule which called for an approximate 4.5% reduction in the calendar year 2023 conversion factor. In December 2022, the Consolidated Appropriations Act (2023) was signed into law. The Consolidated Appropriations Act (2023) provides partial relief related to Medicare cuts including 2.5% relief in 2023 and 1.25% relief in 2024. As a result, the reimbursement rate reduction beginning in January 2023 was approximately 2.0%.
•Workers’ compensation funding. Payments received under certain workers’ compensation arrangements may be based on predetermined state fee schedules, which may be impacted by changes in state funding.
•Number of people with private health insurance. Physical therapy services are often covered by private health insurance. Individuals covered by private health insurance may be more likely to use healthcare services because it helps offset the cost of such services. As health insurance coverage rises, demand for physical therapy services tends to also increase.
Key Components of Operating Results
Net patient revenue. Net patient revenues are recorded for physical therapy services that the Company provides to patients including physical therapy, work conditioning, hand therapy, aquatic therapy and functional capacity assessment. Net patient revenue is recognized based on contracted amounts with payors or other established rates, adjusted for the estimated effects of any variable consideration, such as contractual allowances and implicit price concessions. Visit volume is primarily driven by conversion of physician referrals and marketing efforts.
Other revenue. Other revenue consists of revenue generated by our AWS, MSA and Sports Medicine service lines.
Salaries and related costs. Salaries and related costs consist primarily of wages and benefits for our healthcare professionals engaged directly and indirectly in providing services to patients.
Rent, clinic supplies, contract labor and other. Comprised of non-salary, clinic related expenses consisting of rent, clinic supplies, contract labor and other costs including travel expenses and depreciation at our clinics.
Provision for doubtful accounts. Provision for doubtful accounts represents the Company’s estimate of accounts receivable recorded during the period that may ultimately prove uncollectible based upon several factors, including the age of outstanding receivables, the historical experience of collections, the impact of economic conditions and, in some cases, the specific customer account's ability to pay.
Selling, general and administrative expenses. Selling, general and administrative expenses consist primarily of wages and benefits for corporate personnel, corporate outside services, marketing costs, depreciation of corporate fixed assets, amortization of intangible assets and certain corporate level professional fees, including those related to legal, accounting and payroll.
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Goodwill, intangible and other asset impairment charges. Goodwill, intangible and other asset impairment charges represent non-cash charges associated with the write-down of goodwill, trade name indefinite-lived intangible and other assets.
Change in fair value of warrant liability. Represents non-cash amounts related to the change in the estimated fair value of the IPO Warrants.
Change in fair value of contingent common shares liability. Represents non-cash amounts related to the change in the estimated fair value of Earnout Shares and Vesting Shares.
Loss on settlement of redeemable preferred stock. Represents the loss on settlement of the Wilco Holdco redeemable preferred stock liability based on the value of cash and equity provided to preferred stockholders in relation to the outstanding Wilco Holdco redeemable preferred stock liability at the time of the closing of the Business Combination.
Interest expense, net. Interest expense includes the cost of borrowing under the Company’s credit facility and amortization of deferred financing costs.
Interest expense on redeemable preferred stock. Represents interest expense related to accruing dividends on the Wilco Holdco redeemable preferred stock based on contract terms.
Other expense (income), net. Other expense (income), net is comprised of income statement activity not related to the core operations of the Company.
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Key Business Metrics
When evaluating the results of operations, management has identified a number of metrics that allow for specific evaluation of performance on a more detailed basis. See “Results of Operations” for further discussion on financial statement metrics such as net revenue, net income, EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA.
Patient visits
As the main operations of the Company are driven by physical therapy services provided to patients, management considers total patient visits to be a key volume measure of such services. In addition to total patient visits, management analyzes (1) average VPD calculated as total patient visits divided by business days for the period, as this allows for comparability between time periods with an unequal number of business days, and (2) average VPD per clinic, calculated as average VPD divided by the average number of clinics open during the period (excluding clinics under management service agreements).
Net patient revenue ("NPR") per visit
The Company calculates net patient revenue per visit, its most significant reimbursement metric, by dividing net patient revenue in a period by total patient visits in the same period.
Clinics
To better understand geographical and location-based trends, the Company evaluates metrics based on the 923 clinics (excluding clinics under management service agreements) and 20 managed clinic locations as of December 31, 2022. De novo clinics represent organic new clinics opened during the current period based on sophisticated site selection analytics. Acqui-novo clinics represent new clinics opened during the current period, that were existing clinic operations not previously owned by the Company, in a target geography that provides the Company with an immediate presence, available staff and referral relationships of the former owner within the surrounding areas. Acquired clinics represent new clinics from purchases of physical therapy practices. Same clinic revenue growth rate identifies revenue growth year over year on clinics that have been owned and operating for over one year. This metric is determined by isolating the population of clinics that have been open for at least 12 months and calculating the percentage change in revenue of this population between the current and prior comparable periods.
The following table presents selected operating and financial data that we believe are key indicators of our operating performance:
| Year Ended | |||||||||||||||||
| December 31, 2022 | December 31, 2021 | December 31, 2020 | |||||||||||||||
| Number of clinics (end of period) | 923 | 910 | 875 | ||||||||||||||
| Number of clinics managed (end of period) | 20 | 20 | 22 | ||||||||||||||
| New clinics during the period | 36 | 58 | 23 | ||||||||||||||
| Business days | 255 | 257 | 257 | ||||||||||||||
| Average visits per day | 21,817 | 20,608 | 18,274 | ||||||||||||||
| Average visits per day per clinic | 23.6 | 23.1 | 21.0 | ||||||||||||||
| Total patient visits | 5,563,243 | 5,296,161 | 4,696,475 | ||||||||||||||
| Net patient revenue per visit | $ | 103.53 | $ | 105.94 | $ | 112.76 | |||||||||||
| Same clinic revenue growth rate | 1.8 | % | 4.6 | % | (26.9) | % | |||||||||||
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The following table provides a rollforward of activity related to the number of clinics during the corresponding periods:
| Year Ended | |||||||||||||||||
| December 31, 2022 | December 31, 2021 | December 31, 2020 | |||||||||||||||
| Number of clinics (beginning of period) | 910 | 875 | 872 | ||||||||||||||
| Add: New clinics opened during the period | 36 | 51 | 23 | ||||||||||||||
| Add: Clinics acquired during the period | — | 7 | — | ||||||||||||||
| Less: Clinics closed/sold during the period | 23 | 23 | 20 | ||||||||||||||
| Number of clinics (end of period) | 923 | 910 | 875 | ||||||||||||||
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Results of Operations
Year ended December 31, 2022 compared to year ended December 31, 2021
The following table summarizes the Company’s consolidated results of operations for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021:
| Year Ended December 31, | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2022 | 2021 | Increase/(Decrease) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ($ in thousands, except percentages) | $ | % of Revenue | $ | % of Revenue | $ | % | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Net patient revenue | $ | 575,940 | 90.6 | % | $ | 561,080 | 89.4 | % | $ | 14,860 | 2.6 | % | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Other revenue | 59,731 | 9.4 | % | 66,791 | 10.6 | % | (7,060) | (10.6) | % | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Net revenue | 635,671 | 100.0 | % | 627,871 | 100.0 | % | 7,800 | 1.2 | % | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Cost of services: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Salaries and related costs | 357,982 | 56.3 | % | 336,496 | 53.6 | % | 21,486 | 6.4 | % | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rent, clinic supplies, contract labor and other | 202,568 | 31.9 | % | 180,932 | 28.8 | % | 21,636 | 12.0 | % | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Provision for doubtful accounts | 13,869 | 2.2 | % | 16,369 | 2.6 | % | (2,500) | (15.3) | % | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Total cost of services | 574,419 | 90.4 | % | 533,797 | 85.0 | % | 40,622 | 7.6 | % | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Selling, general and administrative expenses | 114,724 | 18.0 | % | 111,809 | 17.8 | % | 2,915 | 2.6 | % | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Goodwill, intangible and other asset impairment charges | 486,262 | 76.5 | % | 962,303 | 153.3 | % | (476,041) | (49.5) | % | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Operating loss | (539,734) | (84.9) | % | (980,038) | (156.1) | % | 440,304 | (44.9) | % | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Change in fair value of warrant liability | (4,243) | (0.7) | % | (22,595) | (3.6) | % | 18,352 | (81.2) | % | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Change in fair value of contingent common shares liability | (42,525) | (6.7) | % | (175,140) | (27.9) | % | 132,615 | (75.7) | % | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Loss on settlement of redeemable preferred stock | — | — | % | 14,037 | 2.2 | % | (14,037) | n/m | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Interest expense, net | 45,278 | 7.1 | % | 46,320 | 7.4 | % | (1,042) | (2.2) | % | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Interest expense on redeemable preferred stock | — | — | % | 10,087 | 1.6 | % | (10,087) | n/m | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Other expense, net | 3,333 | 0.5 | % | 241 | — | % | 3,092 | n/m | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Loss before taxes | (541,577) | (85.2) | % | (852,988) | (135.9) | % | 311,411 | (36.5) | % | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Income tax benefit | (48,530) | (7.6) | % | (70,960) | (11.3) | % | 22,430 | (31.6) | % | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Net loss | $ | (493,047) | (77.6) | % | $ | (782,028) | (124.6) | % | $ | 288,981 | (37.0) | % | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Net patient revenue. Net patient revenue for the year ended December 31, 2022 was $575.9 million compared to $561.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2021, an increase of approximately $14.9 million or 2.6%.
The increase in net patient revenue was primarily driven by increased visit volumes as a result of higher clinician staffing, higher clinician productivity and higher clinic count in the current period, partially offset by unfavorable net patient revenue per visit and two less business days in the current period. Total patient visits increased by approximately 0.3 million visits, or 5.0%, driving an increase in average visits per day of 1,209, or 5.9%. Net patient revenue per visit decreased $2.41, or 2.3%, to $103.53 for the year ended December 31, 2022 compared to $105.94 for the year ended December 31, 2021. The decrease in net patient revenue per visit during the year ended December 31, 2022 compared to the year ended December 31, 2021 was primarily driven by Medicare rate cuts and unfavorable mix shifts related to payor classes and states.
The following chart reflects additional detail with respect to drivers of the change in year-to-date net patient revenue (in millions):
Other revenue. Other revenue for the year ended December 31, 2022 was $59.7 million compared to $66.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2021, a decrease of $7.1 million or 10.6%. The decrease in other revenue was primarily driven by the absence of Home Health service line revenue for the year ended December 31, 2022 as a result of its divestiture on October 1, 2021.
Salaries and related costs. Salaries and related costs for the year ended December 31, 2022 were $358.0 million compared to $336.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2021, an increase of approximately $21.5 million or 6.4%. Salaries and related costs as a percentage of net revenue was 56.3% and 53.6% for the year ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively. The increase of $21.5 million was primarily driven by higher compensation due to wage inflation for clinic labor and increased clinician and support staff due to higher visit volumes. The increase as a percentage of net revenue was primarily driven by higher compensation due to wage inflation for clinic labor, higher share-based compensation for clinical employees and lower net patient revenue per visit during the year ended December 31, 2022.
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Rent, clinic supplies, contract labor and other. Rent, clinic supplies, contract labor and other costs for the year ended December 31, 2022 were $202.6 million compared to $180.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2021, an increase of approximately $21.6 million or 12.0%. Rent, clinic supplies, contract labor and other costs as a percentage of net revenue was 31.9% and 28.8% for the year ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively. The increase of $21.6 million and increase as a percentage of net revenue was primarily driven by higher contract labor costs and a higher clinic count during the year ended December 31, 2022.
Provision for doubtful accounts. Provision for doubtful accounts for the year ended December 31, 2022 was $13.9 million compared to $16.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2021, a decrease of $2.5 million or 15.3%. Provision for doubtful accounts as a percentage of net revenue was 2.2% and 2.6% for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively. The decrease of $2.5 million and decrease as a percentage of net revenue was primarily driven by favorable cash collections during the year ended December 31, 2022.
Selling, general and administrative expenses. Selling, general and administrative expenses for the year ended December 31, 2022 were $114.7 million compared to $111.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2021, an increase of $2.9 million or 2.6%. Selling, general and administrative expenses as a percentage of net revenue was 18.0% and 17.8% for the year ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively. The increase of $2.9 million and increase as a percentage of net revenue was primarily due to a loss on legal settlement, higher public company operating costs and non-ordinary legal and regulatory costs during the year ended December 31, 2022, partially offset by lower reorganization and severance costs and lower transaction costs incurred relative to the year ended December 31, 2021.
Goodwill, intangible and other asset impairment charges. Goodwill, intangible and other asset impairment charges for the year ended December 31, 2022 was $486.3 million compared to $962.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2021. The amount primarily relates to the non-cash write-down of goodwill and the trade name indefinite-lived intangible asset as a result of factors including increases in discount rates, decreases in share price and lower public company comparative multiples in 2022, and revised forecasts reflecting lower than expected patient visit volumes, the acceleration of clinician attrition, competition for clinicians in the labor market and net patient revenue per visit decreases primarily driven by unfavorable payor, state and service mix shifts in 2021. Refer to Note 5 - Goodwill, Trade Name and Other Intangible Assets in the consolidated financial statements for further details.
Change in fair value of warrant liability. Change in fair value of warrant liability for the year ended December 31, 2022 was a gain of $4.2 million compared to a gain of $22.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2021. The gain in each period relates to the decrease in the estimated fair value of the Company’s IPO Warrants, primarily driven by decreases in price of the Company's Public Warrants during the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively.
Change in fair value of contingent common shares liability. Change in fair value of contingent common shares liability for the year ended December 31, 2022 was a gain of $42.5 million compared to a gain of $175.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2021. The gain in each period relates to the decrease in the estimated fair value of the Company’s Earnout Shares and Vesting Shares, primarily driven by decreases in the Company's share price during the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively.
Loss on settlement of redeemable preferred stock. Loss on settlement of redeemable preferred stock for the year ended December 31, 2021 was $14.0 million. The loss is based on the value of cash and equity provided to preferred stockholders in relation to the outstanding Wilco Holdco redeemable preferred stock liability at the time of the closing of the Business Combination.
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Interest expense, net. Interest expense, net for the year ended December 31, 2022 was $45.3 million compared to $46.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2021, a decrease of $1.0 million or 2.2%. The decrease in interest expense was primarily driven by lower outstanding principal balances under the Company's credit agreement and higher cash flow hedge benefits recognized during the year ended December 31, 2022, partially offset by higher interest rates under the Company’s credit agreement during the year ended December 31, 2022.
Interest expense on redeemable preferred stock. Interest expense on redeemable preferred stock for the year ended December 31, 2021 was $10.1 million. The redeemable preferred stock was fully settled in June 2021 and no longer accrued interest following the Business Combination.
Other expense, net. Other expense, net for the year ended December 31, 2022 was $3.3 million compared to $0.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2021, an increase of approximately $3.1 million. The increase was driven by $2.8 million in loss on debt extinguishment related to the derecognition of the unamortized deferred financing costs and original issuance discount associated with the full repayment of the 2016 first lien term loan during the year ended December 31, 2022. In addition, during the year ended December 31, 2021, the Company recorded $5.5 million in loss on debt extinguishment related to the derecognition of the unamortized deferred financing costs and original issue discount associated with the partial and full repayment of the 2016 first and second lien term loans, respectively, and recorded a $5.8 million gain on the sale of its Home Health service line.
Income tax benefit. Income tax benefit for the year ended December 31, 2022 was $48.5 million compared to $71.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2021, a decrease in benefit of approximately $22.4 million. The decrease was primarily driven by the difference in the effective tax rate for the respective periods. The effective tax rate was different between the respective periods primarily due to higher nondeductible impairment charges, nondeductible transaction costs, nondeductible loss on settlement of redeemable preferred stock, interest expense on redeemable preferred stock and fair value adjustments related to liability-classified share-based instruments for the year ended December 31, 2021.
Net loss. Net loss for the year ended December 31, 2022 was $493.0 million compared to $782.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2021, a decrease in loss of approximately $289.0 million. The comparatively lower loss was primarily driven by lower goodwill, intangible and other asset impairment charges, partially offset by lower gains related to changes in fair value of warrant liability and contingent common shares liability, lower income tax benefit and no expenses related to redeemable preferred stock during the year ended December 31, 2022 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2021.
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Non-GAAP Financial Measures
The following table reconciles the supplemental non-GAAP financial measures, as defined under the rules of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), presented herein to the most directly comparable financial measures calculated and presented in accordance with GAAP. The Company has provided the non-GAAP financial measures, which are not calculated or presented in accordance with GAAP, as supplemental information and in addition to the financial measures that are calculated and presented in accordance with GAAP. EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are defined as net income from continuing operations calculated in accordance with GAAP, less net income attributable to non-controlling interests, plus the sum of income tax expense, interest expense, net, depreciation and amortization (“EBITDA”) and further adjusted to exclude certain items of a significant or unusual nature, including but not limited to, goodwill, intangible and other asset impairment charges, changes in fair value of warrant liability and contingent common shares liability, share-based compensation, non-ordinary legal and regulatory matters, loss on legal settlement, loss on debt extinguishment, transaction and integration costs, reorganization and severance costs, pre-opening de novo costs, gain on sale of Home Health service line, business optimization costs, loss on settlement of redeemable preferred stock and charges related to lease terminations (“Adjusted EBITDA”).
We present EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA because they are key measures used by our management team to evaluate our operating performance, generate future operating plans and make strategic decisions. The Company believes EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are useful to investors for the purposes of comparing our results period-to-period and alongside peers and understanding and evaluating our operating results in the same manner as our management team and board of directors.
These supplemental measures should not be considered superior to, as a substitute for or as an alternative to, and should be considered in conjunction with, the GAAP financial measures presented. In addition, since these non-GAAP measures are not determined in accordance with GAAP, they are susceptible to varying calculations and may not be comparable to other similarly titled non-GAAP measures of other companies.
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EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA (Non-GAAP Financial Measures)
The following is a reconciliation of net loss, the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure, to EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA (each of which is a non-GAAP financial measure) for each of the periods indicated. For additional information on these non-GAAP financial measures, see “Non-GAAP Financial Measures” above.
| Year Ended | |||||||||||||||||
| ($ in thousands) | December 31, 2022 | December 31, 2021 | December 31, 2020 | ||||||||||||||
| Net loss | $ | (493,047) | $ | (782,028) | $ | (298) | |||||||||||
| Plus (minus): | |||||||||||||||||
Net loss (income) attributable to non-controlling interests | 668 | 3,700 | (5,073) | ||||||||||||||
Interest expense, net | 45,278 | 46,320 | 69,291 | ||||||||||||||
Interest expense on redeemable preferred stock | — | 10,087 | 19,031 | ||||||||||||||
Income tax (benefit) expense | (48,530) | (70,960) | 2,065 | ||||||||||||||
Depreciation and amortization expense | 39,841 | 37,995 | 39,700 | ||||||||||||||
| EBITDA | $ | (455,790) | $ | (754,886) | $ | 124,716 | |||||||||||
Goodwill, intangible and other asset impairment charges(1) | 486,262 | 962,303 | — | ||||||||||||||
Goodwill, intangible and other asset impairment charges attributable to non-controlling interests(1) | (2,415) | (7,949) | — | ||||||||||||||
Changes in fair value of warrant liability and contingent common shares liability(2) | (46,768) | (197,735) | — | ||||||||||||||
Share-based compensation | 7,432 | 5,769 | 1,936 | ||||||||||||||
Non-ordinary legal and regulatory matters(3) | 6,408 | 2,914 | — | ||||||||||||||
Loss on legal settlement(4) | 3,000 | — | — | ||||||||||||||
Loss on debt extinguishment(5) | 2,809 | 5,534 | — | ||||||||||||||
Transaction and integration costs(6) | 3,289 | 9,788 | 4,790 | ||||||||||||||
Reorganization and severance costs(7) | 1,797 | 3,913 | 7,512 | ||||||||||||||
Pre-opening de novo costs(8) | 992 | 1,929 | 1,565 | ||||||||||||||
| Gain on sale of Home Health service line, net | (199) | (5,846) | — | ||||||||||||||
Business optimization costs(9) | (105) | — | 10,377 | ||||||||||||||
Loss on settlement of redeemable preferred stock(10) | — | 14,037 | — | ||||||||||||||
Charges related to lease terminations(11) | — | — | 4,253 | ||||||||||||||
| Adjusted EBITDA | $ | 6,712 | $ | 39,771 | $ | 155,149 | |||||||||||
(1)Represents non-cash charges related to the write-down of goodwill, trade name indefinite-lived intangible and other assets. Refer to Note 5 of the accompanying consolidated financial statements for further details.
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(2)Represents non-cash amounts related to the change in the estimated fair value of IPO Warrants, Earnout Shares and Vesting Shares. Refer to Notes 3, 13 and 14 of the accompanying consolidated financial statements for further details.
(3)Represents non-ordinary course legal costs related to the previously disclosed ATIP stockholder class action complaints, derivative complaint and SEC inquiry. Refer to Note 18 of the accompanying consolidated financial statements for further details.
(4)Represents charge for net settlement liability related to billing dispute. Refer to Note 18 of the accompanying consolidated financial statements for further details.
(5)Represents charges related to the derecognition of the unamortized deferred financing costs and original issuance discount associated with the full repayment of the 2016 first lien term loan and the partial and full repayment of the 2016 first and second lien term loans, respectively. Refer to Note 8 of the accompanying consolidated financial statements for further details.
(6)Represents costs related to the Business Combination, non-capitalizable debt and capital transaction costs and consulting and planning costs related to preparation to operate as a public company.
(7)Represents severance, consulting and other costs related to discrete initiatives focused on reorganization and delayering of the Company’s labor model, management structure and support functions.
(8)Represents expenses associated with renovation, equipment and marketing costs relating to the start-up and launch of new locations incurred prior to opening.
(9)Represents non-recurring costs to optimize our platform and ATI transformative initiatives. Costs primarily relate to duplicate costs driven by IT and Revenue Cycle Management conversions, labor related costs during the transition of key positions and other incremental costs of driving optimization initiatives.
(10)Represents loss on settlement of redeemable preferred stock based on the value of cash and equity provided to preferred stockholders in relation to the outstanding redeemable preferred stock liability at the time of the closing of the Business Combination.
(11)Represents charges related to lease terminations prior to the end of term for corporate facilities no longer in use.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
Our principal sources of liquidity are historical operating cash flows, borrowings under our credit agreement and proceeds from equity issuances. We have used these funds for our short-term and long-term capital needs, which include salaries, benefits and other employee-related expenses, rent, clinical supplies, outside services, capital expenditures, acquisitions, de novos, acqui-novos and debt service. Our capital expenditure, acquisition, de novo and acqui-novo spend will depend on many factors, including, but not limited to, the targeted number of new clinic openings, patient volumes, clinician labor market, revenue growth rates and level of operating cash flows.
As of December 31, 2022 and December 31, 2021, we had $83.1 million and $48.6 million in cash and cash equivalents, respectively. As of December 31, 2022, we had no available capacity under our 2022 revolving credit facility.
For the year ended December 31, 2022, we had operating cash outflows of $65.5 million driven by items including net losses and the application and repayment of MAAPP funds and deferred employer Social Security taxes. Our ability to generate future operating cash flows depends on many factors, including clinical staffing levels and productivity, costs and capital expenditures, patient volumes, referrals and revenue growth rates.
As of December 31, 2022 and December 31, 2021, the Company had zero and $12.3 million of MAAPP funds included in the balance of cash and cash equivalents, respectively. In addition, as of December 31, 2022 and December 31, 2021, the Company had zero and $5.9 million of deferred Social Security taxes included in the balance of cash and cash equivalents. The Company began applying MAAPP funds to Medicare billings in the second quarter of 2021 and began remitting payments on its deferred employer Social Security taxes in the third and fourth quarters of 2021. The remaining MAAPP funds and deferred employer Social Security taxes were applied and repaid during 2022. The repayment of CARES Act funds, together with net losses and other operational activity, led to a net operating cash outflow for 2022.
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We make reasonable and appropriate efforts to collect accounts receivable, including payor amounts and applicable patient deductibles, co-payments and co-insurance, in a consistent manner for all payor types. Claims are submitted to payors daily, weekly or monthly in accordance with our policy or payor’s requirements. When possible, we submit our claims electronically. The collection process is time consuming and typically involves the submission of claims to multiple payors whose payment of claims may be dependent upon the payment of another payor. Claims under litigation and vehicular incidents can take a year or longer to collect.
Liquidity and going concern
In accordance with Accounting Standards Codification ("ASC") Topic 205-40, Going Concern, the Company has evaluated whether there are certain conditions and events, considered in the aggregate, that raise substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern within twelve months after the date that these consolidated financial statements are issued. This evaluation includes considerations related to the covenants contained in the Company’s 2022 Credit Agreement as well as the Company’s liquidity position overall.
As detailed in Note 8 - Borrowings, the Company’s 2022 Credit Agreement contains customary covenants and restrictions, including financial and non-financial covenants. The financial covenants require the Company to maintain $30.0 million of minimum liquidity, as defined in the agreement, at each test date through the first quarter of 2024. Additionally, beginning in the second quarter of 2024, the Company must maintain a Secured Net Leverage Ratio, as defined in the agreement, not to exceed 7.00:1.00. The net leverage ratio covenant decreases in the third quarter of 2024 to 6.75:1.00 and further decreases in the first quarter of 2025 to 6.25:1.00, which level remains applicable through maturity. The financial covenants are tested as of each fiscal quarter end for the respective periods. Failure to comply with these covenants and restrictions would result in an event of default, subject to customary cure periods.
In addition, the 2022 Credit Facility contains customary representations and warranties, events of default, reporting and other affirmative covenants and negative covenants, including requirements related to the delivery of independent audit reports without certain going concern qualifications, limitations on indebtedness, liens, investments, negative pledges, dividends, junior debt payments, fundamental changes and asset sales and affiliate transactions. Failure to comply with the 2022 Credit Facility covenants and restrictions, including the provision related to certain going concern qualifications for any fiscal year, including the year ended December 31, 2022, could result in an event of default under the 2022 Credit Facility, subject to customary cure periods. In such an event, all amounts outstanding under the 2022 Credit Facility, together with any accrued interest, could then be declared immediately due and payable.
As of December 31, 2022, the Company had $83.1 million in cash and cash equivalents and no available capacity under its 2022 revolving credit facility. As measured based on the definitions in the Company’s 2022 Credit Agreement, liquidity was $72.9 million as of December 31, 2022.
The Company has negative operating cash flows, operating losses and net losses. For the year ended December 31, 2022, the Company had cash flow used in operating activities of $65.5 million, operating loss of $539.7 million and net loss of $493.0 million. In addition, as of December 31, 2022, the Company had an accumulated deficit of $1,339.5 million. These results are, in part, due to trends experienced by the Company including a tight labor market for available physical therapy and other healthcare providers in the workforce, visit volume softness, decreases in rate per visit and increases in interest costs. Based on current liquidity and projected cash use, the Company anticipates violation of its $30.0 million minimum liquidity covenant under its 2022 Credit Agreement within the next twelve months. As a result of the above factors, there is substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern within twelve months following the issuance date of the consolidated financial statements as of and for the period ended December 31, 2022.
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Improving operating results and cash flow is dependent upon the Company’s ability to achieve its business plan to increase clinical staffing levels and clinician productivity, control costs and capital expenditures, increase patient visit volumes and referrals and stabilize rate per visit. However, there can be no assurance that it will be successful in any of these respects.
If the Company does not complete the Transaction as contemplated by the TSA or otherwise access additional financing, the Company will need to consider other alternatives, including pursuing separate amendments to or waivers of the minimum liquidity covenant, the requirement to deliver audited financial statements without certain going concern qualifications, and other requirements under the 2022 Credit Agreement, as well as raising funds from other sources, obtaining alternate financing, disposal of assets, or pursuing other strategic alternatives to improve its liquidity position and business results. There can be no assurance that the Company will be successful in completing the Transaction or accessing such alternative options or financing when needed. Failure to do so could have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, and may lead to events including bankruptcy, reorganization or insolvency.
In addition, the report of the Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm accompanying the consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2022 contains an explanatory paragraph expressing substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. Absent an amendment or waiver, the 2022 Credit Agreement provides that the receipt of a report of the Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm containing an explanatory paragraph expressing substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern could be an event of default, subject to certain exceptions. Pursuant to the TSA, the First Lien Lenders have agreed that, prior to the Outside Closing Date, they will forbear in the exercise of any rights, remedies, powers, privileges and defenses under the 2022 Credit Agreement arising on account of a default, alleged default or event of default (if any) resulting from the going concern explanatory paragraph in the report of the Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm accompanying the consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2022. However, if the transactions contemplated by the TSA are not consummated on its terms or at all, the First Lien Lenders could claim that a default or event of default has occurred under the 2022 Credit Agreement. If such claim is not waived by the First Lien Lenders and the Company is unsuccessful in disputing any such claims (including with respect to the applicability of one of the enumerated exceptions to the 2022 Credit Agreement requirement), the Company could be considered to have an event of default after the expiration of the applicable cure periods. In such event, all amounts outstanding under the 2022 Credit Facility, together with any accrued interest, could then be declared immediately due and payable and could be reclassified to current in the Company's consolidated financial statements for the period. A default on our obligations and an acceleration of our indebtedness by our lenders would have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, and may lead to events including bankruptcy, reorganization or insolvency.
On March 15, 2023, the Company entered into a Transaction Support Agreement (the “TSA”) with certain of its first lien lenders under the 2022 Credit Agreement (the "First Lien Lenders"), the administrative agent under the 2022 Credit Agreement, holders of its Series A Senior Preferred Stock (the "Preferred Equityholders") and holders of the majority of its common stock (together with the First Lien Lenders and the Preferred Equityholders, the “Parties”), setting forth the principal terms of a comprehensive transaction to enhance the Company's liquidity (the "Transaction"). Pursuant to the TSA, and subject to the terms and conditions thereof, the Parties have agreed to support, act in good faith and take all steps reasonably necessary and desirable to consummate the transactions referenced therein by June 15, 2023 (the “Outside Closing Date”).
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The TSA contemplates, among other things, (i) a delayed draw new money financing, available under certain circumstances until the 18 month anniversary of the closing date of the transactions, in an aggregate principal amount equal to $25.0 million in the form of new second lien PIK exchangeable notes (“Second Lien PIK Exchangeable Notes”), (ii) exchange of $100.0 million of the aggregate principal amount of the term loans under the 2022 Credit Facility held by certain of the Preferred Equityholders for Second Lien PIK Exchangeable Notes, (iii) a reduction of the thresholds applicable to the minimum liquidity financial covenant under the 2022 Credit Agreement for certain periods, (iv) a waiver of the requirement to comply with the Secured Net Leverage Ratio financial covenant under the 2022 Credit Agreement for the fiscal quarters ending June 30, 2024, September 30, 2024 and December 31, 2024 and a modification of the levels and certain component definitions applicable thereto in the fiscal quarters ending after December 31, 2024, (v) waiver of the requirement for the Company to deliver audited financial statements without certain going concern qualifications for the years ended December 31, 2022, December 31, 2023, and December 31, 2024, (vi) an increase in the interest rate payable on the existing term loans and revolving loans until the achievement of a specified financial metric and (vii) board representation and observer rights, and other changes to the governance of the Company. The Second Lien PIK Exchangeable Notes would be exchangeable for shares of Class A common stock of the Company at a fixed price of $0.25, and the holders thereof would have the right to vote on corporate matters on an as-exchanged basis. The TSA contains certain representations, warranties and other agreements by the Company and Parties. In accordance with the TSA, the First Lien Lenders agreed that, prior to the Outside Closing Date, they will forbear in the exercise of any rights, remedies, powers, privileges and defenses under the 2022 Credit Agreement arising on account of an alleged default or event of default (if any) resulting from the going concern explanatory paragraph in the independent auditors' report accompanying the consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2022 (the "Credit Agreement Forbearance"). The Parties' obligations under the TSA are, and the closing of the Transaction is, subject to various customary terms and conditions set forth therein, including the execution and delivery of definitive documentation and approval by the Company's stockholders.
There is no assurance that the transactions contemplated by the TSA will be consummated on the terms as described above, on a timely basis or at all.
The accompanying consolidated financial statements have been prepared on a going concern basis, which contemplates the realization of assets and the satisfaction of liabilities in the normal course of business within twelve months after the date that these consolidated financial statements are issued.
2022 Credit Agreement
On February 24, 2022 (the "Refinancing Date"), the Company entered into various financing arrangements to refinance its existing long-term debt, which consisted of $555.0 million in principal under the Company's existing term loan (the "2016 first lien term loan"), which was repaid in full on the Refinancing Date. As part of the 2022 Debt Refinancing, ATI Holdings Acquisition, Inc. (the "Borrower"), an indirect subsidiary of ATI Physical Therapy, Inc., entered into a credit agreement among the Borrower, Wilco Intermediate Holdings, Inc. ("Holdings"), as loan guarantor, Barclays Bank PLC, as administrative agent and issuing bank, and a syndicate of lenders (the "2022 Credit Agreement"). The 2022 Credit Agreement provides a $550.0 million credit facility (the "2022 Credit Facility") that is comprised of a $500.0 million senior secured term loan (the "Senior Secured Term Loan") which was fully funded at closing and a $50.0 million "super priority" senior secured revolver (the "Revolving Loans") with a $10.0 million letter of credit sublimit. The 2022 Credit Facility refinanced and replaced the Company's prior credit facility for which Barclays Bank PLC served as administrative agent for a syndicate of lenders.
The Company recognized $2.8 million in loss on debt extinguishment related to the derecognition of the remaining unamortized deferred financing costs and unamortized original issue discount in conjunction with the repayment of the 2016 first lien term loan. The Company capitalized debt issuance costs totaling $12.5 million related to the 2022 Credit Facility as well as an original issue discount of $10.0 million. The Company capitalized issuance costs of $0.5 million related to the Revolving Loans.
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The Senior Secured Term Loan matures on February 24, 2028 and bears interest, at the Company's election, at a base interest rate of the Alternate Base Rate ("ABR"), as defined in the agreement, plus an applicable credit spread, or the Adjusted Term Secured Overnight Financing Rate ("SOFR"), as defined in the agreement, plus an applicable credit spread. The credit spread is determined based on a pricing grid and the Company's Secured Net Leverage Ratio. The Company may elect to pay 2.0% interest in-kind at a 0.5% premium during the first year under the agreement. The Company elected to pay a portion of its interest in-kind during the third and fourth quarters of 2022. As of December 31, 2022, borrowings on the Senior Secured Term Loan bear interest at 1-month SOFR, subject to a 1.0% floor, plus 7.25% plus the 0.5% paid-in-kind interest premium. As of December 31, 2022, the interest rate on the Senior Secured Term Loan was 12.1% and the effective interest rate was 13.1%. As of December 31, 2022, the outstanding principal amount under the Senior Secured Term Loan was $503.5 million.
The Revolving Loans are subject to a maximum borrowing capacity of $50.0 million and mature on February 24, 2027. Borrowings on the Revolving Loans bear interest, at the Company's election, at a base interest rate of the ABR, as defined in the agreement, plus an applicable credit spread, or the Adjusted Term SOFR Rate, as defined in the agreement, plus an applicable credit spread. The credit spread is determined based on a pricing grid and the Company's Secured Net Leverage Ratio. Commitment fees on the Revolving Loans are payable quarterly at 0.5% per annum on the daily average undrawn portion for the quarter and are expensed as incurred. In December 2022, the Company drew $48.2 million in Revolving Loans. As of December 31, 2022, $48.2 million in Revolving Loans were outstanding and bearing interest at rate of 8.3%.
The 2022 Credit Facility is guaranteed by certain of the Company’s subsidiaries and is secured by substantially all of the assets of Holdings, the Borrower and the Borrower’s wholly owned subsidiaries, including a pledge of the stock of the Borrower, in each case, subject to customary exceptions.
The 2022 Credit Agreement contains customary covenants and restrictions, including financial and non-financial covenants. The financial covenants require the Company to maintain $30.0 million of minimum liquidity, as defined in the agreement, at each test date through the first quarter of 2024. Additionally, beginning in the second quarter of 2024, the Company must maintain a Secured Net Leverage Ratio, as defined in the agreement, not to exceed 7.00:1.00. The net leverage ratio covenant decreases in the third quarter of 2024 to 6.75:1.00 and further decreases in the first quarter of 2025 to 6.25:1.00, which remains applicable through maturity. The financial covenants are tested as of each fiscal quarter end for the respective periods. As of December 31, 2022, the Company has met its minimum liquidity financial covenant.
The 2022 Credit Facility contains customary representations and warranties, events of default, reporting and other affirmative covenants and negative covenants, including requirements related to the delivery of independent audit reports without certain going concern qualifications, limitations on indebtedness, liens, investments, negative pledges, dividends, junior debt payments, fundamental changes and asset sales and affiliate transactions. Failure to comply with the 2022 Credit Facility covenants and restrictions could result in an event of default under the 2022 Credit Facility, subject to customary cure periods. In such an event, all amounts outstanding under the 2022 Credit Facility, together with any accrued interest, could then be declared immediately due and payable.
Under the 2022 Credit Facility, the Company may be required to make certain mandatory prepayments upon the occurrence of certain events, including: an event of default, a Prepayment Asset Sale or receipt of Net Insurance Proceeds (as defined in the 2022 Credit Agreement) in excess of $15.0 million, or excess cash flows exceeding certain thresholds (as defined in the 2022 Credit Agreement).
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Preferred Stock Financing
In connection with the 2022 Debt Refinancing, the Company issued 165,000 shares of non-convertible preferred stock (the "Series A Senior Preferred Stock") plus 5.2 million warrants to purchase shares of the Company's common stock at an exercise price of $3.00 per share (the "Series I Warrants") and warrants to purchase 6.3 million shares of the Company's common stock at an exercise price equal to $0.01 per share (the "Series II Warrants"). The shares of the Series A Senior Preferred Stock have a par value of $0.0001 per share and an initial stated value of $1,000 per share, for an aggregate initial stated value of $165.0 million. The Series I and Series II Warrants are exercisable for 5 years from the Refinancing Date.
The gross proceeds received from the issuance of the Series A Senior Preferred Stock and the Series I and Series II Warrants were $165.0 million, which was allocated among the instruments based on the relative fair values of each instrument. Of the gross proceeds, $144.7 million was allocated to the Series A Senior Preferred Stock, $5.1 million to the Series I Warrants and $15.2 million to the Series II Warrants. The resulting discount on the Series A Senior Preferred Stock will be recognized as a deemed dividend when those shares are subsequently remeasured upon becoming redeemable or probable of becoming redeemable. The Company recognized $2.9 million in issuance costs and $1.4 million of original issue discount related to the Series A Senior Preferred Stock. The Company recognized total issuance costs and original issue discount of approximately $0.2 million and $0.5 million related to the Series I Warrants and Series II Warrants, respectively.
The Series A Senior Preferred Stock has priority over the Company's Class A common stock and all other junior equity securities of the Company, and is junior to the Company's existing or future indebtedness and other liabilities (including trade payables), with respect to payment of dividends, distribution of assets, and all other liquidation, winding up, dissolution, dividend and redemption rights.
The Series A Senior Preferred Stock carries an initial dividend rate of 12.0% per annum (the "Base Dividend Rate"), payable quarterly in arrears. Dividends will be paid in-kind and added to the stated value of the Series A Senior Preferred Stock. The Company may elect to pay dividends on the Series A Senior Preferred Stock in cash beginning on the third anniversary of the Refinancing Date and, with respect to any such dividends paid in cash, the dividend rate then in effect will be decreased by 1.0%.
The Base Dividend Rate is subject to certain adjustments, including an increase of 1.0% per annum on the first day following the fifth anniversary of the Refinancing Date and on each one-year anniversary thereafter, and 2.0% per annum upon the occurrence of either an Event of Noncompliance (as defined in the Certificate of Designation) or a failure by the Company to redeem in full all Series A Senior Preferred Stock upon a Mandatory Redemption Event, which includes a change of control, liquidation, bankruptcy or certain restructurings. The paid in-kind dividends related to the Series A Preferred Stock were $17.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. As of December 31, 2022, the accumulated paid in-kind dividends related to the Series A Preferred Stock were $17.9 million and the aggregate stated value was $182.9 million.
The Company has the right to redeem the Series A Senior Preferred Stock, in whole or in part, at any time (subject to certain limitations on partial redemptions). The Redemption Price for each share of Series A Senior Preferred Stock is equal to the stated value subject to certain price adjustments depending on when such optional redemption takes place, if at all.
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The Series A Senior Preferred Stock is perpetual and is not mandatorily redeemable at the option of the holders, except upon the occurrence of a Mandatory Redemption Event. Upon the occurrence of a Mandatory Redemption Event, to the extent not prohibited by law, the Company is required to redeem all Series A Senior Preferred Stock, in cash, at a price per share equal to the then applicable Redemption Price. Based on the Company’s assessment of the conditions which would trigger the redemption of the Series A Senior Preferred Stock, the Company has determined that the Series A Senior Preferred Stock is neither currently redeemable nor probable of becoming redeemable. Because the Series A Senior Preferred Stock is classified as mezzanine equity and is not considered redeemable or probable of becoming redeemable, the paid in-kind dividends that are added to the stated value do not impact the carrying value of the Series A Senior Preferred Stock in the Company’s consolidated balance sheets. Should the Series A Senior Preferred Stock become probable of becoming redeemable, the Company will recognize changes in the redemption value of the Series A Senior Preferred Stock immediately as they occur and adjust the carrying amount accordingly at the end of each reporting period. As of December 31, 2022, the redemption value of the Series A Senior Preferred Stock was $182.9 million, which is the stated value.
If an Event of Noncompliance occurs, then the holders of a majority of the then outstanding shares of Series A Senior Preferred Stock (the “Majority Holders”) have the right to demand that the Company engage in a sale/refinancing process to consummate a Forced Transaction. A Forced Transaction includes a refinancing of the Series A Senior Preferred Stock or a sale of the Company. Upon consummation of any Forced Transaction, to the extent not prohibited by law, the Company is required to redeem all Series A Senior Preferred Stock, in cash, at a price per share equal to the then applicable Redemption Price.
Holders of shares of Series A Senior Preferred Stock have no voting rights with respect to the Series A Senior Preferred Stock except as set forth in the Certificate of Designation, other documents entered into in connection with the Purchase Agreement and the transactions contemplated thereby, or as otherwise required by law. For so long as any Series A Senior Preferred Stock is outstanding, the Company is prohibited from taking certain actions without the prior consent of the Majority Holders as set forth in the Certificate of Designation which include: issuing equity securities ranking senior to or pari passu with the Series A Senior Preferred Stock, incurring indebtedness or liens, engaging in affiliate transactions, making restricted payments, consummating certain investments or asset dispositions, consummating a change of control transaction unless the Series A Senior Preferred Stock is redeemed in full, altering the Company’s organizational documents, and making material changes to the nature of the Company’s business.
Holders of Series A Senior Preferred Stock, voting as a separate class, have the right to designate and elect one director to serve on the Company’s board of directors until such time after the Refinancing Date that (i) as of any applicable fiscal quarter end, the Company’s trailing 12-month Consolidated Adjusted EBITDA (as defined in the Certificate of Designation) exceeds $100 million, or (ii) the Lead Purchaser ceases to hold at least 50.1% of the Series A Senior Preferred Stock held by it as of the Refinancing Date.
As a result of the 2022 Debt Refinancing and the Preferred Stock Financing, the Company added approximately $77.3 million of cash to its balance sheet.
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Consolidated Cash Flows
The following table presents selected data from our consolidated statements of cash flows:
| Year Ended | |||||||||||
| ($ in thousands) | December 31, 2022 | December 31, 2021 | |||||||||
| Net cash used in operating activities | $ | (65,508) | $ | (42,100) | |||||||
| Net cash used in investing activities | (28,048) | (39,889) | |||||||||
| Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities | 128,079 | (11,523) | |||||||||
| Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents | 34,523 | (93,512) | |||||||||
| Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period | 48,616 | 142,128 | |||||||||
| Cash and cash equivalents at end of period | $ | 83,139 | $ | 48,616 | |||||||
Year ended December 31, 2022 compared to year ended December 31, 2021
Net cash used in operating activities for the year ended December 31, 2022 was $65.5 million compared to $42.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2021, an increase in cash used of $23.4 million. The change was primarily the result of approximately $27.7 million higher net losses as adjusted for non-cash items such as goodwill, intangible and other asset impairment charges and changes in fair value of warrant liability and contingent common shares liability during the year ended December 31, 2022, partially offset by a $3.6 million payment of transaction-related amount due to former owners not recurring in 2022.
Net cash used in investing activities for the year ended December 31, 2022 was $28.0 million compared to $39.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2021, a decrease of approximately $11.8 million. The decrease was primarily driven by cash outflows related to purchases of acqui-novo clinics during the year ended December 31, 2021 not recurring in 2022 and lower capital expenditures during the year ended December 31, 2022 due to fewer clinic openings.
Net cash provided by financing activities for the year ended December 31, 2022 was $128.1 million compared to $11.5 million of cash used in financing activities for the year ended December 31, 2021, an increase in cash provided of $139.6 million. The change was primarily driven by net cash inflows related to the 2022 Debt Refinancing (refer to Note 8 - Borrowings for further details) and drawing Revolving Loans under the 2022 Credit Agreement during the year ended December 31, 2022.
Commitments and Contingencies
The Company may be subject to loss contingencies, such as legal proceedings and claims arising out of its business. The Company records accruals for such loss contingencies when it is probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount of loss can be reasonably estimated. During the year ended December 31, 2022, the Company recorded an accrual related to the outcomes of certain legal matters described in Note 18 - Commitments and Contingencies. As of December 31, 2022, the liability has been fully settled. Refer to Note 18 to our consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report for further information.
We enter into contractual obligations and commitments from time to time in the normal course of business, primarily related to our debt financing and operating leases. Refer to Notes 8 and 17 to our consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report for further information. Additionally, the Company has contractual commitments related to cloud computing and telecommunication service agreements. Refer to Note 18 to our consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report for further information.
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Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements
As of December 31, 2022 and December 31, 2021, the Company did not have any off-balance sheet arrangements.
Critical Accounting Estimates
The discussion and analysis of the Company’s financial condition and results of operations is based upon the Company’s consolidated financial statements, which have been prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP. The preparation of the Company’s consolidated financial statements requires its management to make estimates and judgments that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenue and expenses and related disclosures. The Company’s management bases its estimates, assumptions and judgments on historical experience and various other factors that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. Different assumptions and judgments would change the estimates used in the preparation of the Company’s consolidated financial statements which, in turn, could change the results from those reported. In addition, actual results may differ from these estimates and such differences could be material to the Company’s financial position and results of operations.
Critical accounting estimates are those that the Company’s management considers the most important to the portrayal of the Company’s financial condition and results of operations because they require management's most difficult, subjective or complex judgments, often as a result of the need to make estimates about the effect of matters that are inherently uncertain. The Company’s critical accounting estimates in relation to its consolidated financial statements include those related to:
•Patient revenue recognition and allowance for doubtful accounts
•Realization of deferred tax assets
•Goodwill and intangible assets
Additional information related to our critical accounting estimates can be found in Note 2 - Basis of Presentation and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies of our audited consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report.
Patient revenue recognition and allowance for doubtful accounts
Net patient revenue
We provide an array of services to our patients including physical therapy, work conditioning, hand therapy, aquatic therapy, functional capacity assessment, sports medicine and wellness programs. Net patient revenue consists of these physical therapy services.
Net patient revenue is recognized at an amount equal to the consideration the Company expects to receive from third-party payors, patients and others for services rendered when the performance obligations under the terms of the contract are satisfied.
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There is an implied contract between the Company and the patient upon each patient visit resulting in the Company’s patient service performance obligation. Generally, the performance obligation is satisfied at a point in time, as each service provided is distinct and future services rendered are not dependent on previously rendered services. The Company has separate contractual agreements with third-party payors (e.g., insurers, managed care programs, government programs, workers' compensation) that provide for payments to the Company at amounts different from its established rates. While these agreements are not considered contracts with the customer, they are used for determining the transaction price for services provided to the patients covered by the third-party payors. The payor contracts do not indicate performance obligations of the Company but indicate reimbursement rates for patients who are covered by those payors when the services are provided.
To determine the transaction price associated with the implied contract, the Company includes the estimated effects of any variable consideration, such as contractual allowances and implicit price concessions. When the Company has contracts with negotiated prices for services provided (contracted payors), the Company considers the contractual rates when estimating contractual allowances. Variable consideration is estimated using a portfolio approach that incorporates whether or not the Company has historical differences from negotiated rates due to non-compliance with contract provisions. Historical results indicate that it is probable that negotiated prices less variable consideration will be realized; therefore, this amount is deemed the transaction price and recorded as revenue. The Company records an estimated provision for doubtful accounts based on historical collections for claims with similar characteristics, such as location of service and type of third-party payor, at the time of recognition. Any subsequent impairment of the related receivable is recorded as provision for doubtful accounts.
For non-contracted payors, the Company determines the transaction price by applying established rates to the services provided and adjusting for contractual allowances provided to third-party payors and implicit price concessions. The Company estimates the contractual allowances and implicit price concessions using a portfolio approach based on historical collections for claims with similar characteristics, such as location of service and type of third-party payor, in relation to established rates, because the Company does not have a contract with the underlying payor. Any subsequent changes in estimate on the realization of the receivable is recorded as a revenue adjustment. Management believes that calculating at the portfolio level would not differ materially from considering each patient account separately.
The Company continually reviews the revenue transaction price estimation process to consider updates to laws and regulations and changes in third-party payor contractual terms that result from contract renegotiations and renewals. Due to complexities involved in determining amounts ultimately due under reimbursement arrangements with third-party payors and government entities, which are often subject to interpretation, the Company may receive reimbursement for healthcare services that is different from the estimates, and such differences could be material.
In its evaluation of the revenue transaction price, management assesses historical collection experience in relation to contracted rates, or for non-contracted payors, established rates. The practice of applying historical collection experience to determine the revenue transaction price for current transactions involves significant judgment and estimation. Management subsequently monitors the appropriateness of its estimates for claims on a date of service basis as cash collections on previous periods mature. Actual cash collections upon maturity may differ from the transaction price estimated upon initial recognition, and such differences could be material. If initial revenue recognition estimates increased or decreased by 100 basis points relative to an annual period, the impact to collections of the annual net patient revenue would be approximately $5.8 million. Management believes subsequent changes in estimate as a result of maturity of claims with dates of service in 2019, 2020 and 2021 have not been material to the consolidated statements of operations.
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The following table disaggregates net patient revenue for each associated payor class for the periods indicated below:
| Year Ended | |||||||||||||||||
| December 31, 2022 | December 31, 2021 | December 31, 2020 | |||||||||||||||
| Commercial | 57.6 | % | 56.3 | % | 53.1 | % | |||||||||||
| Government | 24.2 | % | 23.7 | % | 22.2 | % | |||||||||||
| Workers’ Compensation | 12.4 | % | 14.3 | % | 17.6 | % | |||||||||||
Other (1) | 5.8 | % | 5.7 | % | 7.1 | % | |||||||||||
| 100.0 | % | 100.0 | % | 100.0 | % | ||||||||||||
(1) Other is primarily comprised of net patient revenue related to auto personal injury which by its nature may have longer-term collection characteristics relative to other payor classes.
The following table disaggregates accounts receivable, net associated with net patient revenue for each associated payor class as of:
| December 31, 2022 | December 31, 2021 | |||||||||||||
| Commercial | 43.9 | % | 40.3 | % | ||||||||||
| Government | 13.7 | % | 9.1 | % | ||||||||||
| Workers’ Compensation | 15.5 | % | 18.1 | % | ||||||||||
Other (1) | 26.9 | % | 32.5 | % | ||||||||||
| 100.0 | % | 100.0 | % | |||||||||||
(1) Other is primarily comprised of accounts receivable associated with net patient revenue related to auto personal injury.
Allowance for doubtful accounts
The allowance for doubtful accounts is based on estimates of losses related to receivable balances. The risk of collection varies based upon the service, the payor class and the patient’s ability to pay the amounts not reimbursed by the payor. The Company estimates the allowance for doubtful accounts based upon several factors, including the age of the outstanding receivables, the historical experience of collections, the impact of economic conditions and, in some cases, evaluating specific customer accounts for the ability to pay. Management judgment is used to assess the collectability of accounts and the ability of the Company’s customers to pay. The provision for doubtful accounts is included in cost of services in the consolidated statements of operations. When it is determined that a customer account is uncollectible, that balance is written off against the existing allowance.
Realization of deferred tax assets
The Company accounts for income taxes in accordance with ASC 740, Income Taxes. Under ASC 740, deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the future tax consequences attributable to differences between the financial statement carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities and the respective tax bases. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates expected to apply to taxable income in the years in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. The effect on deferred tax assets and liabilities of a change in tax rate is recognized in operations in the period that includes the enactment date.
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We evaluate the realizability of deferred tax assets and reduce those assets using a valuation allowance if it is more likely than not that some portion or all of the deferred tax asset will not be realized. Among the factors used to assess the likelihood of realization are projections of future taxable income streams and the expected timing of the reversals of existing temporary differences. The judgments made at any point in time may be impacted by changes in tax codes, statutory tax rates or future taxable income levels. This could materially impact our assessment of the need for valuation allowance reserves and could cause our provision for income taxes to vary significantly from period to period.
Goodwill and intangible assets
Goodwill represents the excess of the purchase price over the fair value of assets acquired and liabilities assumed. The Company accounts for goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible assets under ASC Topic 350, Intangibles – Goodwill and Other, which requires the Company to test goodwill and other indefinite-lived assets for impairment annually or whenever events or circumstances indicate that impairment may exist.
The cost of acquired businesses is allocated first to its identifiable assets, both tangible and intangible, based on estimated fair values. Costs allocated to finite-lived identifiable intangible assets are generally amortized on a straight-line basis over the remaining estimated useful lives of the assets. The excess of the purchase price over the fair value of identifiable assets acquired, net of liabilities assumed, is recorded as goodwill.
Goodwill and intangible assets with indefinite lives are not amortized but must be reviewed at least annually for impairment. If the impairment test indicates that the carrying value of an intangible asset exceeds its fair value, then an impairment loss should be recognized in the consolidated statements of operations in an amount equal to the excess carrying value over fair value. Fair value is determined using valuation techniques based on estimates, judgments and assumptions the Company believes are appropriate in the circumstances. The Company completed the interim and annual impairment analyses of goodwill as of March 31, 2022, June 30, 2022, September 30, 2022, October 1, 2022 and December 31, 2022 using an average of a discounted cash flow analysis and comparable public company analysis. Goodwill impairment charges were recorded during the first, second, third and fourth quarters of 2022. The key assumptions associated with determining the estimated fair value include projected revenue growth rates, EBITDA margins, the terminal growth rate, the discount rate and relevant market multiples.
The Company completed the interim and annual impairment analysis of the indefinite lived intangible asset as of March 31, 2022, June 30, 2022, September 30, 2022, October 1, 2022 and December 31, 2022 using the relief from royalty method. Indefinite lived intangibles asset impairment charges were recorded during the first, second, third and fourth quarters of 2022. The key assumptions associated with determining the estimated fair value include projected revenue growth rates, the royalty rate, the discount rate and the terminal growth rate.
The Company has one reporting unit for purposes of the Company’s goodwill impairment tests.
During the year ended December 31, 2022, the Company identified interim triggering events as a result of factors including potential changes in discount rates and decreases in share price. The Company determined that the combination of these factors constituted interim triggering events that required further analysis with respect to potential impairment to goodwill, trade name indefinite-lived intangible and other assets. Accordingly, the Company performed interim quantitative impairment testing as of March 31, 2022, June 30, 2022, September 30, 2022 and December 31, 2022 and determined that the fair value amounts were below the respective carrying amounts. As a result, the Company recorded non-cash impairment charges of $318.9 million related to goodwill and $164.4 million related to the trade name indefinite-lived intangible asset during the year ended December 31, 2022. Refer to Note 5 - Goodwill, Trade Name and Other Intangible Assets in the consolidated financial statements for further details.
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Fair value determinations require considerable judgment and are sensitive to changes in underlying assumptions, estimates and market factors. Estimating the fair value of the Company’s reporting unit and the indefinite-lived intangible asset requires us to make assumptions and estimates regarding our future plans, as well as industry, economic, and regulatory conditions. These assumptions and estimates include projected revenue growth rates, EBITDA margins, terminal growth rates, discount rates, relevant market multiples, royalty rates and other market factors. If current expectations of future growth rates, margins and cash flows are not met, or if market factors outside of our control change significantly, including discount rates, relevant market multiples, company share price and other market factors, then our reporting unit or the indefinite-lived intangible asset might become impaired in the future, negatively impacting our operating results and financial position. As the carrying amounts of goodwill and the Company’s trade name indefinite-lived intangible asset were impaired as of December 31, 2022 and written down to fair value, those amounts are more susceptible to an impairment risk if there are unfavorable changes in assumptions and estimates. Additionally, goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible assets associated with acquisitions that may occur in the future are recorded on the balance sheet at their estimated acquisition date fair values, those amounts are more susceptible to impairment risk if business operating results or market conditions deteriorate.
To further illustrate sensitivity of the valuation models, if we had changed the assumptions used to estimate the fair value of our goodwill reporting unit and trade name indefinite-lived intangible asset in our most recent quantitative analysis, these isolated changes, which are reasonably possible to occur, would have led to the following approximate increase/(decrease) in the aggregate fair value of the reporting unit under the discounted cash flow analysis or trade name indefinite-lived intangible asset (in thousands):
| Discount rate | Terminal growth rate(1) | EBITDA margin | Royalty rate | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 50 basis points | 100 basis points | 100 basis points | 50 basis points | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Increase | Decrease | Increase | Decrease | Increase | Decrease | Increase | Decrease | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Goodwill | $(40,000) | $45,000 | $45,000 | $(35,000) | $40,000 | $(40,000) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Trade name | $(10,000) | $15,000 | $15,000 | $(10,000) | $35,000 | $(35,000) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
(1) An increase of 100 basis points to our assumed non-terminal revenue growth rates would result in approximately $50 million of an estimated increase to the fair value of our goodwill reporting unit, whereas a 100 basis point decrease would result in approximately $40 million of an estimated decrease to the fair value of our goodwill reporting unit.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements
For information regarding recent accounting pronouncements, refer to Note 2 - Basis of Presentation and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies in the accompanying consolidated financial statements.
Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk
As of December 31, 2022, the Company is exposed to interest rate variability with regard to its existing variable-rate debt instrument, which exposure primarily relates to movements in various interest rates, such as SOFR. The Company utilizes interest rate cap derivative instruments for purposes of hedging exposures related to such variable-rate cash payments. Based on our current hedging instruments as of December 31, 2022, a hypothetical increase of interest rates by 100 basis points would increase our annual cash interest expense by approximately $2.9 million and a hypothetical decrease of interest rates by 100 basis points would decrease our annual cash interest expense by approximately $3.0 million. As of December 31, 2022, the fair value of the Company’s derivative instruments consisted of assets of $5.0 million and liabilities of $0.1 million. As of December 31, 2021, the fair value of the Company’s derivative instrument consisted of a $0.3 million non-current asset and $0.3 million current liability.
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In March 2020, the Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") issued Accounting Standards Update ("ASU") 2020-04, Reference Rate Reform (Topic 848): Facilitation of the Effects of Reference Rate Reform on Financial Reporting. The amendments in this update provide optional guidance for a limited period of time to ease the potential burden in accounting for (or recognizing the effects of) reference rate reform on financial reporting. This standard was subsequently amended by ASU No. 2021-01, Reference Rate Reform (Topic 848): Scope, and by ASU 2020-06, Reference Rate Reform (Topic 848): Deferral of the Sunset Date of Topic 848. This standard is optional and may be applied by entities after March 12, 2020, but no later than December 31, 2024. As of December 31, 2022, the Company has a derivative instrument for which the interest rate is indexed to the LIBOR. During the period ended March 31, 2022, the Company modified the reference rate index on its hedged items, which are future variable-rate cash payments, from LIBOR to SOFR. The Company elected to apply the hedge accounting expedients related to probability and the assessments of effectiveness for future cash flows to assume that the index upon which future hedged transactions will be based matches the index on the corresponding derivative, which is LIBOR. The guidance allows for different expedient elections to be made at different points in time. As of December 31, 2022, the Company continues to apply the hedge accounting expedients and does not anticipate that this guidance will have a material impact on its consolidated financial statements, however, the Company will continue to assess the potential impact on its future hedging relationships and expedient elections, as applicable.
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Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data
ATI Physical Therapy, Inc.
Index to Consolidated Financial Statements
| Page | |||||
| Financial Statements: | |||||
Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
To the Board of Directors and Stockholders of ATI Physical Therapy, Inc.
Opinions on the Financial Statements and Internal Control over Financial Reporting
We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets of ATI Physical Therapy, Inc. and its subsidiaries (the “Company”) as of December 31, 2022 and 2021, and the related consolidated statements of operations, of comprehensive loss, of changes in stockholders’ equity and of cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2022, including the related notes and schedule of valuation and qualifying accounts for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2022 appearing under Item 15 (collectively referred to as the “consolidated financial statements”). We also have audited the Company's internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2022, based on criteria established in Internal Control - Integrated Framework (2013) issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO).
In our opinion, the consolidated financial statements referred to above present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company as of December 31, 2022 and 2021, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2022 in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America. Also in our opinion, the Company did not maintain, in all material respects, effective internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2022, based on criteria established in Internal Control - Integrated Framework (2013) issued by the COSO because material weaknesses in internal control over financial reporting existed as of that date related to insufficient complement of tax personnel and ineffective controls over the income tax provision.
A material weakness is a deficiency, or a combination of deficiencies, in internal control over financial reporting, such that there is a reasonable possibility that a material misstatement of the annual or interim financial statements will not be prevented or detected on a timely basis. The material weaknesses referred to above are described in Management’s Annual Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting appearing under Item 9A. We considered these material weaknesses in determining the nature, timing, and extent of audit tests applied in our audit of the 2022 consolidated financial statements, and our opinion regarding the effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting does not affect our opinion on those consolidated financial statements.
Substantial Doubt About the Company’s Ability to Continue as a Going Concern
The accompanying consolidated financial statements have been prepared assuming that the Company will continue as a going concern. As discussed in Note 2 to the consolidated financial statements, the Company has negative operating cash flows, operating losses and net losses that raise substantial doubt about its ability to continue as a going concern. Management's plans in regard to these matters are also described in Note 2. The consolidated financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty.
Change in Accounting Principle
As discussed in Note 2 to the consolidated financial statements, the Company changed the manner in which it accounts for leases in 2020.
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Basis for Opinions
The Company's management is responsible for these consolidated financial statements, for maintaining effective internal control over financial reporting, and for its assessment of the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting, included in management's report referred to above. Our responsibility is to express opinions on the Company’s consolidated financial statements and on the Company's internal control over financial reporting based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (PCAOB) and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.
We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audits to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the consolidated financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud, and whether effective internal control over financial reporting was maintained in all material respects.
Our audits of the consolidated financial statements included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the consolidated financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the consolidated financial statements. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the consolidated financial statements. Our audit of internal control over financial reporting included obtaining an understanding of internal control over financial reporting, assessing the risk that a material weakness exists, and testing and evaluating the design and operating effectiveness of internal control based on the assessed risk. Our audits also included performing such other procedures as we considered necessary in the circumstances. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinions.
Definition and Limitations of Internal Control over Financial Reporting
A company’s internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. A company’s internal control over financial reporting includes those policies and procedures that (i) pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the company; (ii) provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, and that receipts and expenditures of the company are being made only in accordance with authorizations of management and directors of the company; and (iii) provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use, or disposition of the company’s assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements.
Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.
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Critical Audit Matters
The critical audit matters communicated below are matters arising from the current period audit of the consolidated financial statements that were communicated or required to be communicated to the audit committee and that (i) relate to accounts or disclosures that are material to the consolidated financial statements and (ii) involved our especially challenging, subjective, or complex judgments. The communication of critical audit matters does not alter in any way our opinion on the consolidated financial statements, taken as a whole, and we are not, by communicating the critical audit matters below, providing separate opinions on the critical audit matters or on the accounts or disclosures to which they relate.
Valuation of patient service revenue and related accounts receivable - contractual allowances
As described in Notes 2 and 4 to the consolidated financial statements, net patient revenue is recognized at an amount equal to the consideration the Company expects to receive from third-party payors, patients and others for services rendered when the performance obligations under the terms of the contract are satisfied. For the year ended December 31, 2022, net patient service revenue was $575.9 million and related accounts receivable was $80.7 million as of December 31, 2022. There is an implied contract between the Company and the patient upon each patient visit resulting in the Company’s patient service performance obligation. To determine the transaction price associated with the implied contract, management includes the estimated effects of any variable consideration, such as contractual allowances and implicit price concessions. When the Company has contracts with negotiated prices for services provided, management considers the contractual rates when recording revenue and adjusts for any variable consideration to the transaction price to arrive at revenue. For non-contracted payors, management determines the transaction price by applying established rates to the services provided and adjusting for contractual allowances provided to third-party payors and implicit price concessions. Management estimates the contractual allowances and implicit price concessions using a portfolio approach based on historical collections for claims with similar characteristics, such as location of service and type of third-party payor, in relation to established rates, because the Company does not have a contract with the underlying payor. Any subsequent changes in estimate on the realization of the receivable is recorded as a revenue adjustment. Management continually reviews the revenue transaction price estimation process to consider updates to laws and regulations and changes in third-party payor contractual terms that result from contract renegotiations and renewals.
The principal considerations for our determination that performing procedures relating to the valuation of patient service revenue and related accounts receivable for contractual allowances is a critical audit matter are (i) the significant judgment by management in estimating the value of patient service revenue and related accounts receivable for contractual allowances, and (ii) a high degree of auditor judgment, subjectivity and effort in performing procedures and evaluating audit evidence related to the contractual allowances.
Addressing the matter involved performing procedures and evaluating audit evidence in connection with forming our overall opinion on the consolidated financial statements. These procedures included testing the effectiveness of controls relating to management’s valuation of patient accounts receivable, including controls over the contractual allowance model, completeness and accuracy of historical collection data and review of adjustments made by management to contractual allowances. These procedures also included, among others, testing management’s process for developing the estimate for contractual allowances, including (i) evaluating the appropriateness of the analysis used by management, (ii) testing the completeness and accuracy of underlying historical collection data used in the analysis, (iii) testing, on a sample basis, the accuracy of revenue transactions and cash collections from the historical billing and collection data used in management’s analysis, (iv) performing a retrospective comparison of actual cash collected subsequent to the prior year-end to evaluate the reasonableness of the prior year estimate, and (v) evaluating the reasonableness of adjustments made by management to contractual allowances.
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Goodwill and trade name indefinite-lived intangible asset impairment assessments
As described in Notes 2 and 5 to the consolidated financial statements, the Company’s consolidated goodwill and trade name indefinite-lived intangible asset balances were $286.5 million and $245.0 million, respectively, as of December 31, 2022. Goodwill and intangible assets with indefinite lives are not amortized but must be reviewed at least annually for impairment, or whenever events or circumstances indicate that impairment may exist. If the impairment test indicates that the carrying value of goodwill of the reporting unit or an intangible asset exceeds its fair value, then an impairment loss should be recognized in the consolidated statements of operations in an amount equal to the excess carrying value over fair value. Management completed the interim and annual impairment analyses of goodwill as of March 31, 2022, June 30, 2022, September 30, 2022, October 1, 2022 and December 31, 2022 by estimating the fair value of the Company’s single reporting unit using an average of a discounted cash flow analysis and comparable public company analysis. The key assumptions associated with determining the estimated fair value of the reporting unit include projected revenue growth rates, EBITDA margins, the terminal growth rate, the discount rate, and relevant market multiples. Management completed the interim and annual impairment analyses of the trade name indefinite-lived intangible asset as of March 31, 2022, June 30, 2022, September 30, 2022, October 1, 2022 and December 31, 2022 by estimating the fair value of the trade name indefinite-lived intangible asset using the relief from royalty method. The key assumptions associated with determining the estimated fair value of the trade name indefinite-lived intangible asset include projected revenue growth rates, the royalty rate, the discount rate and the terminal growth rate. During the year ended December 31, 2022, the Company recorded $318.9 million and $164.4 million of total impairment charges related to goodwill and the trade name indefinite-lived intangible asset, respectively.
The principal considerations for our determination that performing procedures relating to the goodwill and trade name indefinite-lived intangible asset impairment assessments is a critical audit matter are (i) the significant judgment by management when developing the fair value estimates of the reporting unit and trade name indefinite-lived intangible asset, (ii) a high degree of auditor judgment, subjectivity, and effort in performing procedures and evaluating management’s significant assumptions related to projected revenue growth rates, EBITDA margins, the terminal growth rate, the discount rate and relevant market multiples, related to goodwill and projected revenue growth rates, the royalty rate, the terminal growth rate, and the discount rate related to the trade name indefinite-lived intangible asset, and (iii) the audit effort involved the use of professionals with specialized skill and knowledge.
Addressing the matter involved performing procedures and evaluating audit evidence in connection with forming our overall opinion on the consolidated financial statements. These procedures included testing the effectiveness of controls relating to management’s goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible asset impairment assessments, including controls over the valuation of the Company’s single reporting unit and the trade name indefinite-lived intangible asset. These procedures also included, among others, (i) testing management’s process for developing the fair value estimates, (ii) evaluating the appropriateness of management’s fair value analyses, (iii) testing the completeness and accuracy of the underlying data used in the analyses, and (iv) evaluating significant assumptions used by management related to the projected revenue growth rates, EBITDA margins, the terminal growth rate, the discount rate, and relevant market multiples related to goodwill and projected revenue growth rates, the royalty rate, the terminal growth rate and the discount rate related to the trade name indefinite-lived intangible asset. Evaluating management’s assumptions related to projected revenue growth rates and EBITDA margins involved evaluating whether the assumptions were reasonable considering past performance of the Company, the consistency with external data from other sources, and whether these assumptions were consistent with evidence obtained in other areas of the audit. Professionals with specialized skill and knowledge were used to assist in evaluating (i) the appropriateness of the discounted cash flow analysis, comparable public company analysis and relief from royalty method, and (ii) the reasonableness of the assumptions related to the discount rates, the terminal growth rate, the royalty rate, and relevant market multiples.
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/s/ PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
March 16, 2023
We have served as the Company's auditor since 2021.
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ATI Physical Therapy, Inc.
Consolidated Balance Sheets
($ in thousands, except share and per share data)
| December 31, 2022 | December 31, 2021 | ||||||||||
| Assets: | |||||||||||
| Current assets: | |||||||||||
| Cash and cash equivalents | $ | $ | |||||||||
Accounts receivable (net of allowance for doubtful accounts of $ | |||||||||||
| Prepaid expenses | |||||||||||
| Other current assets | |||||||||||
| Assets held for sale | |||||||||||
| Total current assets | |||||||||||
| Property and equipment, net | |||||||||||
| Operating lease right-of-use assets | |||||||||||
| Goodwill, net | |||||||||||
| Trade name and other intangible assets, net | |||||||||||
| Other non-current assets | |||||||||||
| Total assets | $ | $ | |||||||||
| Liabilities, Mezzanine Equity and Stockholders' Equity: | |||||||||||
| Current liabilities: | |||||||||||
| Accounts payable | $ | $ | |||||||||
| Accrued expenses and other liabilities | |||||||||||
| Current portion of operating lease liabilities | |||||||||||
| Current portion of long-term debt | |||||||||||
| Liabilities held for sale | |||||||||||
| Total current liabilities | |||||||||||
| Long-term debt, net | |||||||||||
| Warrant liability | |||||||||||
| Contingent common shares liability | |||||||||||
| Deferred income tax liabilities | |||||||||||
| Operating lease liabilities | |||||||||||
| Other non-current liabilities | |||||||||||
| Total liabilities | |||||||||||
Commitments and contingencies (Note 18) | |||||||||||
| Mezzanine equity: | |||||||||||
Series A Senior Preferred Stock, $ | |||||||||||