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UHS adds to addiction services unit

King of Prussia's Universal Health Services Inc. said Friday it had reached a $350 million deal to buy Foundations Recovery Network L.L.C, a Nashville company that will give UHS a bigger footprint in fast-growing addiction services.

King of Prussia's Universal Health Services Inc. said Friday it had reached a $350 million deal to buy Foundations Recovery Network L.L.C, a Nashville company that will give UHS a bigger footprint in fast-growing addiction services.

UHS, which is under a federal criminal investigation for billing practices at its mental hospitals, is already the nation's largest operator of inpatient behavioral health facilities.

UHS finished 2014 with 20,037 psychiatric beds at 182 facilities in the United States, including 1,171 at seven facilities in the Philadelphia region.

Foundations will add four inpatient facilities with 322 beds and eight outpatient centers. The Foundations facilities are in California, Georgia, and Tennessee.

"We were attracted to their proven track record of providing high-quality treatment and reputation for excellence in this very attractive market segment," Alan B. Miller, UHS's chairman and chief executive, said.

Two federal laws since 2008 have significantly expanded insurance coverage for mental-health care by requiring insurance companies to maintain parity between benefits for physical and mental illnesses.

Foundations Recovery's majority owner is the billionaire Pritzker family, which is best known for Hyatt Hotels. The sale to UHS is expected to close within weeks.

Foundations will position UHS to compete more intensely with its chief rival in the mental-health business, Acadia Healthcare Co. Inc., which has made addiction treatment central to its strategy. Acadia bought Philadelphia's Belmont Center for Comprehensive Services in July for $35 million.

A month ago, UHS added to its mental-health operations in the United Kingdom with the acquisition of Alpha Hospitals Holdings Ltd. for an undisclosed price. UHS now has 21 hospitals and 1,100 beds in the United Kingdom.

hbrubaker@phillynews.com

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