Transparent, a company that makes it easier for people to access affordable health care, announced it is buying Accolade, a leader in health advocacy, expert medical opinions, and primary care. Transcarent will buy Accolade for $7.03 per share in cash, representing a total equity value of approximately $621 million.
This deal, which has been unanimously approved by the Boards of Directors of both companies, will enhance Transcarent’s mission to make it easy for people to access high-quality and affordable health and care. And the combined platform will deliver a more personalized and engaging Member experience.
The deal is expected to bring Transcarent’s generative AI-powered WayFinding and comprehensive care experiences – Cancer Care, Surgery Care, Weight Health – along with its Pharmacy Benefit offering together with Accolade’s Personalized Healthcare Platform and expertise in advocacy, expert medical opinions (EMO), and primary care. And members will have one place to go for their health and care needs, leading to a better experience and higher-quality care, and lower costs for health consumers, the companies who employ them, and the payers who support them.
This new unified platform will provide:
1.) A personalized experience with higher utilization and lower costs – Utilizing WayFinding, people will have one place to go for benefits navigation, clinical guidance, and care delivery. And by transitioning from standalone point solutions to a single, integrated platform, Members will have a more personalized experience, resulting in high utilization and measurably reduced costs.
2.) A quality-first experience – Accolade’s strengths in advocacy, expert medical opinions, and primary care are essential for increasing people’s access to quality care and reducing unnecessary treatments and procedures. And members relying on Transcarent’s Cancer Care, Surgery Care, and Weight Health will receive more straightforward access to high-quality providers and facilities.
3.) Easier access and less paperwork for physicians – Transcarent will continue to deliver a more intuitive experience for Members while also reducing friction and administrative burdens for the doctors, nurses, and care advocates who support them. The expanded platform will allow for more health data continuity and integration.
4.) Expansive point solution and local care ecosystem – Accolade has created deep data integrations with a broad ecosystem of leading partners, including diabetes, mental health, fertility healthcare, musculoskeletal (MSK), and kidney disease. Bringing together the best of provider, partner, and payer ecosystems, the two companies will make it easier to access high-quality point solutions employers choose as well as health plan network options and local preferred choices.
The merger consideration of $7.03 per share represents a premium of approximately 110% over Accolade’s closing stock price on January 7, 2025, which is the last trading day before public disclosure of the transaction. And Transcarent will finance the transaction through a fully-committed equity financing led by General Catalyst and Glen Tullman’s 62 Ventures.
The deal is expected to close during the second calendar quarter of 2025 following Accolade stockholder approval, regulatory approvals, and other customary closing conditions. Upon completion, Transcarent and Accolade will work collaboratively to ensure a smooth integration process, with a shared commitment to a high-quality health and care experience for their Members, improved outcomes, and lower costs. Upon the deal’s completion, Accolade will become a privately held company, and its common stock will no longer be listed on Nasdaq.
The Board of Directors of Accolade unanimously approved the merger agreement and the deal. It will recommend that the company’s stockholders approve both the adoption of the merger agreement and the transaction on the terms outlined in the merger agreement.
Evercore served as the exclusive financial advisor to Transcarent and Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, Professional Corporation served as legal advisor to Transcarent.
Morgan Stanley served as exclusive financial advisor to Accolade and Cooley served as legal advisor to Accolade.
KEY QUOTES:
“Our clients – employers and health plans and the people who work for them or who they serve – are telling us that healthcare today is too confusing, too complex, and too costly. By integrating our recently introduced generative AI-powered WayFinding and comprehensive care experiences with Accolade’s advocacy, expert medical opinions, and primary care, we have a solution that finally makes it easy to access high-quality health and care and deliver lower costs for the people who pay for care – employers, and all of us. In January, we added more than 500,000 Members to our platform including some of the most innovative, and respected employers in the world, signaling their interest in a single comprehensive platform to make it easy for their people and their companies to improve their health and care experience, deliver better health outcomes, and drive down costs. This combination will accelerate that process, and I consider it a perfect fit, adding great people to our team and expanding choice and access for our clients and their employees and their families.”
– Glen Tullman, Chief Executive Officer of Transcarent
“Joining forces with Transcarent allows us to expand our mission of empowering people to make the best decisions for their health and wellbeing. The two companies share a focus on embracing AI and advanced technology to change the way consumers experience the healthcare system. Combining Transcarent’s complex care experience with Accolade’s people and 16 years of healthcare data, we will create a more personalized healthcare experience for people while improving outcomes and driving down costs.”
– Rajeev Singh, Chief Executive Officer of Accolade
“We are excited to double down on creating a powerful AI platform enabling consumers to take charge of their care. Since Glen and I created Transcarent, our vision has been to transform healthcare at scale and this acquisition brings us closer to that vision.”
– Hemant Taneja, CEO and Managing Director of General Catalyst, who will be joining the Transcarent Board of Directors as a part of this transaction
