Who are the potential buyers for The Villages Health System? Bidding concludes today in the Chapter 11 proceedings.

THE VILLAGES, Fla. – Tuesday afternoon is the deadline for companies to bid for The Villages Health System, the beleaguered health care provider seeking Chapter 11 bankruptcy amid accusations of overbilling Medicare.

Prospective bidders for the company have until 4 p.m. Tuesday to submit a bid that is higher than the stalking horse bid put up by CenterWell, a company owned by insurer Humana.

CenterWell is expected to pay $50 million in cash for the company, along with whatever costs are determined to be necessary by the bankruptcy court to handle any defaults or losses, according to court documents.

If any other companies bid for TVH, an auction for the company will be held on Sept. 7.

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A sale order hearing is expected to be held on Sept. 9.

TVH announced in July that it was filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, around six months after the company admitted it had found a “problem with some of our Medicare billing practices.”

The company’s biggest debtor is the U.S. government. Bankruptcy filings show the company owes more than $360 million to the government.

The winning bidder will get eight primary care centers and two specialty care centers. The Villages Health System handles some 55,000 patients.

But there have been objections to the sale.

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Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida, also known as Florida Blue, filed an objection to TVH’s plan last month.

In the complaint, Florida Blue says The Villages Health System added diagnostic codes to patient files through Medicare over a four-year period, resulting in overpayments by Florida Blue of $25 million.

Florida Blue’s attorneys say that in 2024 alone, TVH falsely added diagnostic codes for “Coagulation Defects and Other Specified Hematological Disorders” and “specified Heart Arrhythmias.”

Those codes led to an overpayment of approximately $8 million alone, according to the complaint.

Attorneys for Florida Blue say TVH is in default of its contracts with the health insurer because of the overpayments, and is asking the court to make sure TVH settles its contract default with Florida Blue, rather than letting TVH’s eventual buyer handle that settlement.

Florida Blue’s objection is one of several against the current bankruptcy agreement for The Villages Health system, a health care center that promotes a holistic approach to care, with an emphasis on team care for patients, a range of specialty doctors and wellness programs, and 10 locations serving 55,000 patients, according to the company’s website.

Another objection came from United Healthcare in July, which also had Medicare overpayments because of erroneous billing from TVH, the health insurance company says.

United Healthcare said in court documents that the bankruptcy plan allows TVH to hide insider dealings. United Healthcare accused TVH of distributing some $183 million, from 2022 to 2024, to the Morse family, to pay down a line of credit.

The Morse family controls The Villages through several companies.

The health insurer also says that it is one of the largest providers of Medicare Advantage plans to The Villages Health System, and the companies have an exclusive marketing agreement. Yet the bankruptcy announcement blindsided United Healthcare officials.

United Healthcare says it wants the bankruptcy deal and TVH’s finances to undergo more scrutiny before the sale.

TVH, meanwhile, says it has had to borrow millions of dollars to keep its health centers going and pay the doctors, so that patient care is not affected during the transition. The court approved additional funds at a hearing on Aug. 18.