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PART I

Item 1.	Business	4

Item 1A.	Risk Factors	15

Item 1B.	Unresolved Staff Comments	24

Item 1C.	Cybersecurity	24

Item 2.	Properties	26

Item 3.	Legal Proceedings	26

Item 4.	Mine Safety Disclosures	27

PART II

Item 5.	Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities	28

Item 6.	Reserved	29

Item 7.	Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations	30

Item 7A.	Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk	46

Item 8.	Financial Statements and Supplementary Data	47

Item 9.	Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure	86

Item 9A.	Controls and Procedures	86

Item 9B.	Other Information	87

Item 9C.	Disclosure regarding Foreign Jurisdictions that Prevent Inspection	87

PART III

Item 10.	Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance	87

Item 11.	Executive Compensation	87

Item 12.	Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters	87

Item 13.	Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence	87

Item 14.	Principal Accountant Fees and Services	87

PART IV

Item 15.	Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules	87

Item 16.	Form 10-K Summary	95

Signatures		96

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

We make statements in this report that are considered forward-looking statements within the meaning given such term under Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). These statements contain forward-looking information relating to the financial condition, results of operations, plans, objectives, future performance and business of our Company. These statements (often using words such as “believes”, “expects”, “intends”, “plans”, “appear”, “should” and similar words) involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those we project. Included among such statements, but not limited to, are those relating to opening clinics, availability of personnel and the insurance reimbursement environment. 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 as a result of certain risks, uncertainties, and factors, which include, but are not limited to:

•	changes in Medicare rules and guidelines and reimbursement or failure of our clinics to maintain their Medicare certification and/or enrollment status;

•	revenue we receive from Medicare and Medicaid being subject to potential retroactive reduction;

•	changes in reimbursement rates or payment methods from third party payors including government agencies, and changes in the deductibles and co-pays owed by patients;

•	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;

•	competitive, economic or reimbursement conditions in our markets which may require us to reorganize or close certain clinics and thereby incur losses and/or closure costs including the possible write-down or write-off of goodwill and other intangible assets;

•	the impact of future public health crises and epidemics/pandemics, such as was the case with the novel strain of COVID-19 and its variants;

•	one of our acquisition agreements contains a put-right related to a future purchase of a majority interest in a separate company;

•	the impact of future vaccinations and/or testing mandates at the federal, state and/or local level, which could have an adverse impact on staffing, revenue, costs and the results of operations;

•	our debt and financial obligations could adversely affect our financial condition, our ability to obtain future financing and our ability to operate our business;

•	changes as the result of government enacted national healthcare reform;

•	business and regulatory conditions including federal and state regulations;

•	governmental and other third party payor inspections, reviews, investigations and audits, which may result in sanctions or reputational harm and increased costs;

•	revenue and earnings expectations;

•	contingent consideration provisions in certain our acquisition agreements, the value of which may impact future financial results;

•	legal actions, which could subject us to increased operating costs and uninsured liabilities;

•	general economic conditions, including but not limited to inflationary and recessionary periods;

•

actual or perceived events involving banking volatility or limited liability, defaults or other adverse developments that affect the U.S or the international financial systems, may result in market wide liquidity problems which could have a material and adverse impact on our available cash and results of operations;

•	our business depends on hiring, training, and retaining qualified employees;

•	availability and cost of qualified physical therapists;

•	competitive environment in the industrial injury prevention services business, which could result in the termination or non-renewal of contractual service arrangements and other adverse financial consequences for that service line;

•	our ability to identify and complete acquisitions, and the successful integration of the operations of the acquired businesses;

•	impact on the business and cash reserves resulting from retirement or resignation of key partners and resulting purchase of their non-controlling interest (minority interests);

•	maintaining our information technology systems with adequate safeguards to protect against cyber-attacks;

•

a security breach of our or our third party vendors’ information technology 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 of the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act;

•	maintaining clients for which we perform management, industrial injury prevention related services, and other services, as a breach or termination of those contractual arrangements by such clients could cause operating results to be less than expected;

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•	maintaining adequate internal controls;

•	maintaining necessary insurance coverage;

•	availability, terms, and use of capital; and

•	weather and other seasonal factors.

Many factors are beyond our control. Given these uncertainties, you should not place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements. Please see the other sections of this report and our other periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) for more information on these factors. Our forward-looking statements represent our estimates and assumptions only as of the date of this 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.

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PART I

ITEM 1.

BUSINESS

GENERAL

U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. and subsidiaries (collectively, “we”, “us”, “our” or the “Company”), operates its business through two reportable business segments. Our reportable segments consist of the physical therapy operations segment and the industrial injury prevention services segment. Through our subsidiaries, we operate outpatient physical therapy clinics that provide pre-and post-operative care for a variety of orthopedic-related disorders and sports-related injuries, treatment for neurological-related injuries and rehabilitation of injured workers. We also have a majority interest in businesses which are leading providers of industrial injury prevention services (“IIP”). Services provided in this business include onsite injury prevention and rehabilitation, performance optimization, post-offer employment testing, functional capacity evaluations and ergonomic assessments. The majority of the IIP services are contracted with and paid for directly by employers, including a number of Fortune 500 companies. Other clients include large insurers and their contractors. These services are performed through Industrial Sports Medicine Professionals, consisting primarily of specialized certified athletic trainers (“ATCs”).

We were re-incorporated in April 1992 under the laws of the State of Nevada and have operating subsidiaries organized in various states in the form of limited partnerships, limited liability companies and wholly-owned corporations. This description of our business should be read in conjunction with our financial statements and the related notes contained in Item 8 in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Our principal executive offices are located at 1300 West Sam Houston Parkway South, Suite 300, Houston, Texas 77042. Our telephone number is (713) 297-7000. Our website is www.usph.com.

Acquisitions of Businesses and Interests

During the last three years, we completed the acquisitions of the following clinic practices and IIP businesses detailed below:

		% Interest	Number of
Acquisition	Date	Acquired	Clinics
October 2023 Acquisition	October 31, 2023	**	*
September 2023 Acquisition 1	September 29, 2023	70%	4
September 2023 Acquisition 2	September 29, 2023	70%	1
July 2023 Acquisition	July 31, 2023	70%	7
May 2023 Acquisition	May 31, 2023	45%	4
February 2023 Acquisition	February 28, 2023	80%	1
November 2022 Acquisition	November 30, 2022	80%	13
October 2022 Acquisition	October 31, 2022	60%	14
September 2022 Acquisition	September 30, 2022	80%	2
August 2022 Acquisition	August 31, 2022	70%	6
March 2022 Acquisition	March 31, 2022	70%	6
December 2021 Acquisition	December 31, 2021	75%	3
November 2021 Acquisition	November 30, 2021	70%	*
September 2021 Acquisition	September 30, 2021	100%	*
June 2021 Acquisition	June 30, 2021	65%	8
March 2021 Acquisition	March 31, 2021	70%	6

*	IIP business

**	On October 31, 2023, we concurrently acquired 100% of an IIP business and a 55% equity interest in an ergonomics software business (“October 2023 Acquisition”).

Our strategy is to continue acquiring outpatient physical therapy practices, develop outpatient physical therapy clinics as satellites in existing partnerships, and continue acquiring companies that provide or serve the Company’s industrial injury prevention services sector.

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On May 30, 2023, the Company completed a secondary offering of 1,916,667 shares of its common stock at an offering price of $90.00 per share. Upon completion of the offering, the Company received net proceeds of approximately $163.6 million, after deducting an underwriting discount of $8.6 million and recognizing related fees and expenses of $0.2 million. A portion of the net proceeds was used to repay the $35.0 million then outstanding under the Company’s credit facility while the remainder is expected to be used primarily for additional acquisitions.

OUR OPERATING SEGMENTS

Physical Therapy Operations

Our physical therapy operations segment primarily operates through subsidiary clinic partnerships (“Clinic Partnerships”), in which the Company generally owns a 1% general partnership interest in the Clinic Partnerships. The Company’s limited partnership interests generally range from 65% to 75% (a range of 10%-99%) in the Clinic Partnerships. For the vast majority of the Clinic Partnerships, the managing healthcare practitioner is a physical therapist who owns the remaining limited partnership interest in the Clinic Partnership. The managing therapist of each clinic owns, directly or indirectly, the remaining limited partnership interest in most of the clinics (hereinafter referred to as “Clinic Partnerships”). Generally, the therapist partners have no interest in the net losses of Clinic Partnerships, except to the extent of their capital accounts. Since we also develop satellite clinic facilities of existing clinics, most Clinic Partnerships consist of more than one clinic location. To a lesser extent, the Company operates some clinics, through wholly-owned subsidiaries, under profit sharing arrangements with therapists (hereinafter referred to as “Wholly-Owned Facilities”).

Our Clinics

We operated 671 clinics in 42 states on December 31, 2023. Our highest concentration of clinics is in the following states: Texas, Tennessee, Michigan, Virginia, Florida, Oregon, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Missouri, Idaho, Arizona, South Carolina, Alabama and Connecticut. In addition to our 671 clinics, we also managed 43 physical therapy practices for unrelated physician groups and hospitals as of December 31, 2023.

The table below indicates historical information regarding our clinic counts.

	For the Year Ended
	December 31, 2023			December 31, 2022			December 31, 2021
Number of clinics, beginning of period		640			591			554
Additions		46			65			42
Closed or sold		(15	)		(16	)		(5	)
Number of clinics, end of period		671			640			591

Our typical clinic occupies 1,000 to 7,000 square feet of leased space in an office building or shopping center. There are 25 clinics occupying space in the range of over 7,000 square feet to 16,500 square feet. We attempt to lease ground level space for our patients’ ease of access to our clinics.

Each Clinic Partnership maintains an independent local identity, while at the same time enjoying the benefits of national purchasing, negotiated third-party payor contracts, centralized support services and management practices. Under a management agreement, the Company provides a variety of support services to each clinic, including supervision of site selection, construction, clinic design and equipment selection, establishment of accounting systems and billing procedures and training of office support personnel, processing of accounts payable, operational direction, auditing of regulatory compliance, payroll, benefits administration, accounting services, legal services, quality assurance and marketing support.

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We provide services at our clinics on an outpatient basis. Patients are usually treated for approximately one hour per day, two to three times a week, typically for two to six weeks. We generally charge for treatment on a per procedure basis. Medicare patients are charged based on prescribed time increments and Medicare billing standards. In addition, our clinics will develop, when appropriate, individual maintenance and self-management exercise programs to be continued after treatment. We continually assess the potential for developing new services and expanding the methods of providing our existing services in the most efficient manner while providing high quality patient care.

Therapists at our clinics initially perform a comprehensive evaluation of each patient, which is then followed by a treatment plan specific to the injury as prescribed by the patient’s physician. The treatment plan may include a number of procedures, including therapeutic exercise, manual therapy techniques, ultrasound, electrical stimulation, hot packs, iontophoresis, education on management of daily life skills and home exercise programs. A clinic’s business primarily comes from referrals by local physicians.

Patient Care Providers and Staffing

Typical minimum staff at a clinic consists of a licensed physical therapist and an office manager. As patient visits grow, staffing may also include additional physical therapists, occupational therapists, therapy assistants, aides, exercise physiologists, athletic trainers and office personnel. Therapy services are performed under the supervision of a licensed therapist.

We continue to seek to attract employment of physical therapists who have established relationships with physicians and other referral sources by offering these therapists a competitive salary and incentives based on the profitability of the clinic that they manage. For multi-site clinic practices in which a controlling interest is acquired by us, the prior owners typically continue as employees to manage the clinic operations, retaining a non-controlling ownership interest in the clinics and receiving a competitive salary for managing the clinic operations. In addition, we have developed satellite clinic facilities as part of existing Clinic Partnerships and Wholly-Owned Facilities, with the result that a substantial number of Clinic Partnerships and Wholly-Owned Facilities operate more than one clinic location. In 2024, we intend to continue to acquire multi-clinic practices and to continue to develop outpatient physical therapy clinics as satellites in existing partnerships, along with increasing our patient volume through marketing and new programs.

Typically, each therapist partner or director, including those employed by Clinic Partnerships in which we acquired a majority interest, enters into a multi-year employment agreement for a term of up to five years with their Clinic Partnership. Each agreement typically provides for a covenant not to compete during the period of his or her employment and for up to two years thereafter. Under each employment agreement, the therapist partner receives a base salary and may receive a bonus based on the net revenues or profits generated by their Clinic Partnership or specific clinic. In the case of Clinic Partnerships, the therapist partner receives earnings distributions based upon their ownership interest. Upon termination of employment, we typically have the right to purchase the therapist’s partnership interest in Clinic Partnerships. For those Clinic Partnerships we created in connection with an acquisition, our partner also has the right to cause us to purchase their interest upon termination of their employment, generally after a set holding period.

In connection with most of our acquired clinics, in the event that a limited non-controlling interest partner’s employment ceases and certain requirements are met as detailed in the respective limited partnership agreements, we have a call right (the “Call Right”) and the selling entity or individual has a put right (the “Put Right”) with respect to the partner’s limited partnership interests. The Put Right and the Call Right do not expire, even upon an individual partner’s death, and contain no mandatory redemption feature. The purchase price of the partner’s limited partnership interest upon exercise of the Put Right or the Call Right is calculated at a predetermined multiple of earnings performance as detailed in the respective agreements.

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Sources of Revenue

Payor sources for physical therapy operations are primarily managed care programs, commercial health insurance, Medicare/Medicaid and workers’ compensation insurance. Commercial health insurance, Medicare and managed care programs generally provide coverage to patients utilizing our clinics after payment by the patients of normal deductibles and co-insurance payments. Workers’ compensation laws generally require employers to provide, directly or indirectly through insurance, costs of medical rehabilitation for their employees from work-related injuries and disabilities and, in some jurisdictions, mandatory vocational rehabilitation, usually without any deductibles, co-payments or cost sharing. Treatments for patients who are parties to personal injury cases are generally paid from the proceeds of settlements with insurance companies or from favorable judgments. If an unfavorable judgment is received, collection efforts are generally not pursued against the patient and the patient’s account is written-off against established reserves. Bad debt reserves relating to all receivable types are regularly reviewed and adjusted as appropriate.

The following table shows our payor mix for the periods presented.

	For the Year Ended
	December 31, 2023					December 31, 2022					December 31, 2021
	Net Patient					Net Patient					Net Patient
Payor	Revenue		Percentage			Revenue		Percentage			Revenue		Percentage
Managed Care Programs/	(In thousands, except percentages)
Commercial Health Insurance	$	244,470		47.5	%	$	215,822		46.5	%	$	209,129		47.7	%
Medicare/Medicaid		188,329		36.6	%		174,401		37.5	%		155,122		35.4	%
Workers' Compensation Insurance		48,834		9.5	%		45,010		9.7	%		44,549		10.2	%
Other		32,923		6.4	%		29,357		6.3	%		29,530		6.7	%
Total	$	514,556		100.0	%	$	464,590		100.0	%	$	438,330		100.0	%

Our physical therapy business depends to a significant extent on our relationships with commercial health insurers, health maintenance organizations, preferred provider organizations and workers’ compensation insurers. In some geographical areas, our clinics must be approved as providers by key health maintenance organizations and preferred provider plans to obtain payments. Failure to obtain or maintain these approvals would adversely affect financial results.

Medicare

During the year ended December 31, 2023, approximately 40.3% of our visits and 36.6% of our net patient revenue was from patients with Medicare or Medicaid program coverage. To receive Medicare reimbursement, a facility (Medicare Certified Rehabilitation Agency) or the individual therapist (Physical/Occupational Therapist in Private Practice) must meet applicable participation conditions set by the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) relating to the type of facility, equipment, recordkeeping, personnel and standards of medical care, and also must comply with all state and local laws. HHS, through Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) and designated agencies, periodically inspects or surveys clinics/providers for approval and/or compliance. Failure of our subsidiaries to obtain or maintain certifications as Medicare providers or failure to enroll as a group of physical/occupational therapists in a private practice could adversely affect financial results.

The Medicare program reimburses outpatient rehabilitation providers based on the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (“MPFS”).

In 2021 the MPFS established by Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) resulted in an approximate 3.5% decrease in the reimbursement for the codes applicable to physical/occupational therapy services provided by our clinics, as compared to 2020. Since January 1, 2022, outpatient therapy services furnished in whole or part by a therapist assistant are paid at an amount equal to 85% of the payment amount otherwise applicable for the service.

For 2022, the MPFS Final Rule was to be an approximately 3.75% reduction to Medicare payments for physical/occupational therapy services. This was due to the expiration of the additional funding to the conversion factor provided by Congress in 2021 under the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021. However, this reduction was addressed in the Protecting Medicare and American Farmers from Sequester Cuts Act (“2021 Act”) signed into law on December 10, 2021. Based on various provisions in the 2021 Act, the Medicare rate reduction for 2022 was approximately 0.75%.

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In the 2023 MPFS Proposed Rule, CMS proposed a 4.5% reduction in the Physician Fee Schedule conversion factor. However, this reduction was later addressed in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 (“2023 Act”). The provisions of the 2023 Act increased the conversion factor by 2.5% for 2023 and by 1.25% for 2024, resulting in an overall reduction of approximately 2% in the 2023 Physician Fee Schedule conversion factor for 2023. In the 2024 MPFS Final Rule, CMS decreased the Physician Fee Schedule conversion factor by 3.39%, which is estimated to result in an approximately 3.5% reduction in reimbursement for the codes applicable to physical/occupational therapy services provided by our clinics, as compared to 2023, unless these reductions are otherwise mitigated by further action of Congress.

The Budget Control Act of 2011 increased the federal debt ceiling in connection with deficit reductions over the next ten years and requires automatic reductions in federal spending by approximately $1.2 trillion. Payments to Medicare providers are subject to these automatic spending reductions, subject to a 2% cap. The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 extended the 2% reductions to Medicare payments through fiscal year 2027. The CARES Act suspended the 2% payment reduction to Medicare payments for dates of service from May 1, 2020, through December 31, 2020, and the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 further suspended the 2% payment reduction through March 2021. In April 2021, additional legislation was enacted that waived the 2% payment reduction for the remainder of calendar 2021. The 2021 Act included a three-month extension of the 2% sequester relief applied to all Medicare payments through March 2022, followed by three months of 1% sequester relief through June 30, 2022. Sequester relief ended on June 30, 2022.

Beginning in 2021, payments to individual therapists (Physical/Occupational Therapist in Private Practice) paid under the fee schedule may be subject to adjustment based on performance in the Merit Based Incentive Payment System (“MIPS”), which measures performance based on certain quality metrics, resource use, and meaningful use of electronic health records. Therapists eligible to participate in MIPS include only those therapists who are enrolled with Medicare as private practice providers and does not include therapists in facility-based providers, such as our clinics enrolled as certified rehabilitation agencies. Less than 3% of our therapist providers currently participate in MIPS. Under the MIPS requirements, a provider’s performance is assessed according to established performance standards each year and then is used to determine an adjustment factor that is applied to the professional’s payment for the corresponding payment year. The provider’s MIPS performance in 2021 determined the payment adjustment in 2023. For those therapist providers who actually participated in MIPS during 2020 and 2021, the resulting average payment adjustment in 2022 and 2023 was an increase of 1%. The 2024 adjustment for those therapist providers who participated in MIPS during 2022 is expected to remain at an average increase of 1%.

Under the Middle-Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 (“MCTRA”), since October 1, 2012, patients who met or exceeded $3,700 in therapy expenditures during a calendar year have been subject to a manual medical review to determine whether applicable payment criteria are satisfied. The $3,700 threshold is applied to Physical Therapy and Speech Language Pathology Services; a separate $3,700 threshold is applied to the Occupational Therapy. The Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (“MACRA”) directed CMS to modify the manual medical review process such that those reviews will no longer apply to all claims exceeding the $3,700 threshold and instead will be determined on a targeted basis based on a variety of factors that CMS considers appropriate.

The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 extended the targeted medical review indefinitely but reduces the threshold to $3,000 through December 31, 2027. For 2028, the threshold amount will be increased by the percentage increase in the Medicare Economic Index (“MEI”) for 2028 and in subsequent years the threshold amount will increase based on the corresponding percentage increase in the MEI for such subsequent year.

CMS adopted a multiple procedure payment reduction (“MPPR”) for therapy services in the final update to the MPFS for calendar year 2011. The MPPR applied to all outpatient therapy services paid under Medicare Part B — occupational therapy, physical therapy and speech-language pathology. Under the policy, the Medicare program pays 100% of the practice expense component of the Relative Value Unit (“RVU”) for the therapy procedure with the highest practice expense RVU, then reduces the payment for the practice expense component for the second and subsequent therapy procedures or units of service furnished during the same day for the same patient, regardless of whether those therapy services are furnished in separate sessions. In 2013, the practice expense component for the second and subsequent therapy service furnished during the same day for the same patient was reduced by 50%.

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Given the history of frequent revisions to the Medicare program and its reimbursement rates and rules, we may not continue to receive reimbursement rates from Medicare that sufficiently compensate us for our services or, in some instances, cover our 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 and/or Medicaid reimbursement payments could materially and, adversely, affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Statutes, regulations, and payment rules governing the delivery of therapy services to Medicare beneficiaries are complex and subject to interpretation. We believe that we are in compliance, in all material respects, with all applicable laws and regulations and are not aware of any pending or threatened investigations involving allegations of potential wrongdoing that would have a material effect on our financial statements as of December 31, 2023. Compliance with such laws and regulations can be subject to future government review and interpretation, as well as significant regulatory action including fines, penalties, and exclusion from the Medicare program.

Marketing

We focus our marketing efforts primarily on physicians, including orthopedic surgeons, neurosurgeons, physiatrists, internal medicine physicians, podiatrists, occupational medicine physicians and general practitioners. In marketing to the physician community, we emphasize our commitment to quality patient care and regular communication with physicians regarding patient progress. We employ personnel to assist clinic directors in developing and implementing marketing plans for the physician community and to assist in establishing relationships with health maintenance organizations, preferred provider organizations, case managers and insurance companies.

Industrial Injury Prevention Services

Services provided in the IIP segment include onsite injury prevention and rehabilitation, performance optimization, post offer employment testing, functional capacity evaluations, and ergonomic assessments. The majority of these services are contracted with and paid for directly by employers, including a number of Fortune 500 companies. Other clients include large insurers and their contractors. Our Company performs these services through Industrial Sports Medicine Professionals, consisting of both physical therapists and ATCs.

In March 2017, we acquired a 55% interest in an initial IIP business. On April 30, 2018, we acquired a 65% interest in another business in the IIP sector and then we combined the two businesses. After the combination, we owned a 59.45% interest in the combined business, Briotix Health, Limited Partnership (“Briotix Health”). On April 11, 2019, we acquired 100% of a third provider of industrial injury prevention services. The acquired company specializes in delivering injury prevention and care, post offer employment testing, functional capacity evaluations and return-to-work services. It performs these services across a network in 45 states including onsite at eleven client locations. The business was then combined with Briotix Health increasing our ownership position in the partnership to approximately 76%. On September 30, 2021, we acquired a company that specializes in return-to-work and ergonomic services, among other offerings and contributed those assets to Briotix Health. On October 31, 2023, we made another acquisition and purchased 100% of an IIP business and contributed its assets to Briotix Health. As part of the October 2023 Acquisition, we also acquired a 55% interest in an ergonomics software business. Subsequent to the abovementioned acquisitions and the purchases and sales of the redeemable non-controlling interests of the limited partners, our ownership in Briotix Health is approximately 92%.

On November 30, 2021, we acquired an approximate 70% interest in another leading provider of IIP services. The founders and owners retained the remaining interest.

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Factors Influencing Demand for Physical Therapy Services

We believe that the following factors, among others, influence the growth of outpatient physical therapy services:

•

Economic Benefits of Therapy Services – Purchasers and providers of healthcare services, such as insurance companies, health maintenance organizations, businesses, and industries, continuously seek cost savings for traditional healthcare services. We believe that our therapy services provide a cost-effective way to prevent short-term disabilities from becoming chronic conditions, to help avoid invasive procedures, to speed recovery from surgery and musculoskeletal injuries and eliminate or minimize the need for opioids.

•	Earlier Hospital Discharge – Changes in health insurance reimbursement, both public and private, have encouraged the earlier discharge of patients to reduce costs. We believe that early hospital discharge practices foster greater demand for outpatient physical therapy services.

•	Aging Population – In general, the elderly population has a greater incidence of disability compared to the population as a whole. As this segment of the population continues to grow, we believe that demand for rehabilitation services will expand.

REGULATION AND HEALTHCARE REFORM

Numerous federal, state and local regulations regulate healthcare services and those who provide them. Some states into which we may expand have laws requiring facilities employing health professionals and providing health-related services to be licensed and, in some cases, to be owned by licensed physical therapists. Our therapists and/or clinics, however, are required to be licensed, as determined by the state in which they provide services. Failure to obtain or maintain any required approvals or licenses could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Regulations Controlling Fraud and Abuse

Various federal and state laws regulate financial relationships involving providers of healthcare services. These laws include Section 1128B(b) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S. C. § 1320a-7b[b]) (the “Fraud and Abuse 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 provisions. 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 Fraud and Abuse Law, which may be more restrictive than the federal Fraud and Abuse Law.

The Office of the Inspector General (“OIG”) of HHS has issued regulations describing compensation financial arrangements that fall within a “Safe Harbor” and, therefore, are not viewed as illegal remuneration under the Fraud and Abuse Law. Failure to fall within a Safe Harbor does not mean that the Fraud and Abuse 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.

The OIG also has issued special fraud alerts and special advisory bulletins to remind the provider community of the importance and application of certain aspects of the Fraud and Abuse Law. One of the OIG special fraud alerts related to the rental of space in physician offices by persons or entities to which the physicians refer patients. The OIG’s stated concern in these arrangements is that rental payments may be disguised kickbacks to the physician-landlords to induce referrals. We rent clinic space for some of our clinics from referring physicians and have taken the steps that we believe are necessary to ensure that all leases comply to the extent possible and applicable, with the space rental Safe Harbor to the Fraud and Abuse Law.

One of the OIG’s special advisory bulletins addressed certain complex contractual arrangements for the provision of items and services. This special advisory bulletin identified several characteristics commonly exhibited by suspect arrangements, the existence of one or more of which could indicate a prohibited arrangement to the OIG.

Due to the nature of our business operations, some of our management service arrangements exhibit one or more of these characteristics. However, we believe we have taken steps regarding the structure of such arrangements as necessary to sufficiently distinguish them from these suspect ventures, and to comply with the requirements of the Fraud and Abuse Law. However, if the OIG believes we have entered into a prohibited contractual joint venture, it could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

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Although the business of managing physician-owned and hospital-owned physical therapy facilities is regulated by the Fraud and Abuse Law, the manner in which we contract with such facilities often falls outside the complete scope of available Safe Harbors. We believe our arrangements comply with the Fraud and Abuse Law, even though federal courts provide limited guidance as to the application of the Fraud and Abuse Law to these arrangements. If our management contracts are held to violate the Fraud and Abuse Law, it could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Stark Law

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. Unlike the Fraud and Abuse Law, the Stark Law is a strict liability statute. Proof of intent to violate the Stark Law is not required. Physical therapy and occupational therapy services are among the “designated health services”. 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 Fraud and Abuse 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.

HIPAA

In an effort to further combat healthcare fraud and protect patient confidentially, Congress included several anti-fraud measures in the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (“HIPAA”). 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, the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (“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.

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.

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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.

COMPETITION

The healthcare industry, including the physical therapy business and the industrial injury prevention services business, is highly competitive. The physical therapy business as well as the industrial injury prevention services business are both highly fragmented with no company having a significant market share nationally. We believe that we are one of the largest national outpatient physical therapy services providers.

Competitive factors affecting our business include quality of care, cost, treatment outcomes, convenience of location, and relationships with, and ability to meet the needs of, referral and payor sources. Our clinics compete, directly or indirectly, with many types of healthcare providers including the physical therapy departments of hospitals, private therapy clinics, physician-owned therapy clinics, and chiropractors. We may face more intense competition if consolidation of the therapy industry continues.

We believe that our partnership strategy provides us with a competitive advantage. Our clinics are partly owned by therapists who have developed exceptional reputations in their local communities and these therapist-owners oversee their respective clinic operations helping to ensure the success of the clinics.

ENFORCEMENT ENVIRONMENT

In recent years, federal and state governments have launched several initiatives aimed at uncovering behavior that violates the federal civil and criminal laws regarding false claims and fraudulent billing and coding practices. Such laws require providers to adhere to complex reimbursement requirements regarding proper billing and coding in order to be compensated for their services by government payors. Our compliance program requires adherence to applicable law and promotes reimbursement education and training; however, a determination that our clinics’ billing and coding practices are false or fraudulent could have a material adverse effect on us.

As a result of our participation in the Medicare and Medicaid programs, we are subject to various governmental inspections, reviews, audits and investigations to verify our compliance with these programs and applicable laws and regulations. Federal, state and private payors regularly conduct audits of billing and coding practices at our clinics. An adverse inspection, review, audit or investigation could result in refunding amounts we have been paid; fines penalties and/or revocation of billing privileges for the affected clinics; the imposition of a corporate integrity agreement; exclusion from participation in the Medicare or Medicaid programs or one or more managed care payor networks; or damage to our reputation.

We and our clinics are subject to federal and state laws prohibiting entities and individuals from knowingly and willfully making claims to Medicare, Medicaid and other governmental programs and third-party payors that contain false or fraudulent information. The federal False Claims Act encourages private individuals to file suits on behalf of the government against healthcare providers such as us. As such suits are generally filed under seal with a court to allow the government adequate time to investigate and determine whether it will intervene in the action, the implicated healthcare providers often are unaware of the suit until the government has made its determination and the seal is lifted. Violations or alleged violations of such laws, and any related lawsuits, could result in (i) exclusion from participation in Medicare, Medicaid and other federal healthcare programs, or (ii) significant financial or criminal sanctions, resulting in the possibility of substantial financial penalties for small billing errors that are replicated in a large number of claims, as each individual claim could be deemed a separate violation. In addition, many states also have enacted similar statutes, which may include criminal penalties, substantial fines, and treble damages.

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COMPLIANCE PROGRAM

Our Compliance Program

Our ongoing success depends upon our reputation for quality service and ethical business practices. We operate in a highly regulated environment with many federal, state and local laws and regulations. We take a proactive interest in understanding and complying with the laws and regulations that apply to our business.

Our Board of Directors (the “Board”) has adopted a Code of Business Conduct and Ethics and a set of Corporate Governance Guidelines to clarify the ethical standards under which the Board and management carry out their duties. In addition, the Board has created a Compliance Committee of the Board (“Compliance Committee”) whose purpose is to assist the Board in discharging their oversight responsibilities with respect to compliance with federal and state laws and regulations relating to healthcare.

We have issued a Compliance Manual and created compliance training materials, hand-outs and an on-line testing program. These tools were prepared to ensure that every employee of our Company and subsidiaries has a clear understanding of our mutual commitment to high standards of professionalism, honesty, fairness and compliance with the law in conducting business. These standards are administered by our Chief Compliance Officer (“CCO”), who has the responsibility for the day-to-day oversight, administration and development of our compliance program. The CCO, internal and external counsel, management and the Compliance Committee review our policies and procedures for our compliance program from time to time in an effort to improve operations and to ensure compliance with requirements of standards, laws and regulations and to reflect the on-going compliance focus areas which have been identified by management, counsel or the Compliance Committee. We also have established systems for reporting potential violations, educating our employees, monitoring and auditing compliance and handling enforcement and discipline.

Committees

Our Compliance Committee, appointed by the Board, consists of four independent directors. The Compliance Committee has general oversight of our Company’s compliance with the legal and regulatory requirements regarding healthcare operations, as well as cybersecurity. The Compliance Committee relies on the expertise and knowledge of management, the CCO and other compliance and legal personnel. The CCO regularly communicates with the Chairman of the Compliance Committee. The Compliance Committee meets at least four times a year or more frequently as necessary to carry out its responsibilities and reports regularly to the Board regarding its actions and recommendations.

We also have an Internal Compliance Committee, which is comprised of Company leaders in the areas of operations, clinical services, finance, human resources, legal, information technology and credentialing. The Internal Compliance Committee has the responsibility for evaluating and assessing Company areas of risk relating to compliance with federal and state healthcare laws, and generally to assist the CCO. The Internal Compliance Committee meets at least four times a year or more frequently as necessary to carry out its responsibilities. In addition, management has appointed a team to address our Company’s compliance with HIPAA. The HIPAA team consists of a security officer and employees from our legal, information systems, finance, operations, compliance, business services and human resources departments. The team prepares assessments and makes recommendations regarding operational changes and/or new systems, if needed, to comply with HIPAA.

Each clinic certified as a Medicare Rehabilitation Agency has a formally appointed governing body composed of a member of our management and the director/administrator of the clinic. The governing body retains legal responsibility for the overall conduct of the clinic. The members confer regularly and discuss, among other issues, clinic compliance with applicable laws and regulations. In addition, there are Professional Advisory Committees which serve as Infection Control Committees. These committees meet in the facilities and function as advisors.

We have in place a Risk Management Committee consisting of, among others, the CCO, the Vice President of Human Resources, and other legal, compliance and operations personnel. This committee reviews and monitors all employee and patient incident reports and provides clinic personnel with actions to be taken in response to the reports.

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Reporting Violations

In order to facilitate our employees’ ability to report in confidence, anonymously and without retaliation any perceived improper work-related activities, accounting irregularities and other violations of our compliance program, we have set up an independent national compliance hotline. The compliance hotline is available to receive confidential reports of wrongdoing Monday through Friday (excluding holidays), 24 hours a day. The compliance hotline is staffed by experienced third party professionals trained to utilize utmost care and discretion in handling sensitive issues and confidential information. The information received is documented and forwarded timely to the CCO, who, together with the Compliance Committee, has the power and resources to investigate and resolve matters of improper conduct.

Educating Our Employees

We utilize numerous methods to train our employees in compliance related issues, including an online learning management system. All employees complete a comprehensive training program comprised of numerous modules relating to our business and proper practices when newly hired and annually thereafter. The directors/administrators also provide periodic “refresher” training for existing employees and one-on-one comprehensive training with new hires. The corporate compliance group responds to questions from clinic personnel and conducts frequent teleconference meetings, webinars and training sessions on a variety of compliance related topics.

When a clinic opens, we provide a package of compliance materials containing manuals and detailed instructions for meeting Medicare Conditions of Participation Standards and other compliance requirements. During follow up training with the director/administrator of the clinic, compliance department staff explain various details regarding requirements and compliance standards. Compliance staff will remain in contact with the director/administrator while the clinic is implementing compliance standards and will provide any assistance required. All new office managers receive training (including Medicare, regulatory and corporate compliance, insurance billing, charge entry and transaction posting and coding, daily, weekly and monthly accounting reports) from the training staff at the corporate office. The corporate compliance group will assist in continued compliance, including guidance to the clinic staff with regard to Medicare certifications, state survey requirements and responses to any inquiries from regulatory agencies.

Monitoring and Auditing Clinic Operational Compliance

We have in place audit programs and other procedures to monitor and audit clinic operational compliance with applicable policies and procedures. We employ internal auditors who, as part of their job responsibilities, conduct periodic audits of each clinic. Most clinics are audited at least once every 24 months and additional focused audits are performed as deemed necessary. During these audits, particular attention is given to compliance with Medicare and internal policies, Federal and state laws and regulations, third party payor requirements, and patient chart documentation, billing, reporting, record keeping, collections and contract procedures. The audits are conducted on site or remotely and include interviews with the employees involved in management, operations, billing and accounts receivable.

Formal audit reports are prepared and reviewed with corporate management and the Compliance Committee. Each clinic director/administrator receives a letter instructing them of any corrective measures required. Each clinic director/administrator then works with the compliance team and operations to ensure such corrective measures are achieved.

Handling Enforcement and Discipline

It is our policy that any employee who fails to comply with compliance program requirements or who negligently or deliberately fails to comply with known laws or regulations specifically addressed in our compliance program should be subject to disciplinary action up to and including discharge from employment. The Compliance Committee, compliance staff, human resources staff and management investigate violations of our compliance program and impose disciplinary action as considered appropriate.

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EMPLOYEES

As of December 31, 2023, we employed approximately 6,720 people nationwide, of which approximately 3,899 were full-time employees. It is crucial that we continue to attract and retain top talent. To attract and retain talented employees, we strive to make our corporate office and all our practices and businesses a diverse and healthy workplace, with opportunities for our employees to receive continuing education, skill development, encouragement to grow and develop their career, all supported by competitive compensation, incentives, and benefits. Our clinical professionals are all licensed and a vast majority have advanced degrees. Our operational leadership teams have long-standing relationships with local and regional universities, professional affiliations, and other applicable sources that provide our practices with a talent pipeline.

We provide competitive compensation and benefits programs to help meet our employees’ needs in the practices and communities in which they serve. These programs (which can vary by practice and employment classification) include competitive base salaries, incentive compensation plans, a 401(k) plan, healthcare and insurance benefits, health savings and flexible spending accounts, paid time off, family leave, education assistance, mental health, and other employee assistance benefits.

We invest resources to develop the talent needed to support our business strategy. Resources include a multitude of training and development programs delivered internally and externally, online and instructor-led, and on-the-job learning formats.

We expect to continue adding personnel in the future as we focus on potential acquisition targets and organic growth opportunities.

AVAILABLE INFORMATION

Our annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K and any amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Exchange Act are made available free of charge on our internet website at www.usph.com as soon as reasonably practicable after we electronically file such material with, or furnish it to, the SEC. The SEC maintains a website that contains reports, proxy and information statements, and other information regarding our filings at http://www.sec.gov.

ITEM 1A.

RISK FACTORS

Our business, operations and financial condition are subject to various risks. Some of these risks are described below, and readers of this Annual Report on Form 10-K should take such risks into account in evaluating our Company or making any decision to invest in us. This section does not describe all risks applicable to our Company, our industry or our business, and it is intended only as a summary of material factors affecting our business.

RISKS RELATED TO OUR BUSINESS AND OPERATIONS

Decreases in Medicare reimbursement rate may adversely affect our financial results.

The Medicare program reimburses outpatient rehabilitation providers based on the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (“MPFS”). For services provided in 2024, we expect our reimbursement rates under the MPFS to be approximately 3.5% less than the applicable reimbursement rates during 2023.

Statutes, regulations, and payment rules governing the delivery of therapy services to Medicare beneficiaries are complex and subject to interpretation. The Company believes that the Company is in compliance, in all material respects, with all applicable laws and regulations and are not aware of any pending or threatened investigations involving allegations of potential wrongdoing that would have a material effect on the Company’s financial statements as of December 31, 2023. Compliance with such laws and regulations can be subject to future government review and interpretation, as well as significant regulatory action including fines, penalties, and exclusion from the Medicare program. For the year ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively, net patient revenues from Medicare were approximately $170.7 million and $154.9 million, respectively.

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Given the history of frequent revisions to the Medicare program and its reimbursement rates and rules, we may not continue to receive reimbursement rates from Medicare that sufficiently compensate us for our services or, in some instances, cover our 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 and/or Medicaid reimbursement payments could materially and, adversely, affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Revenue we receive from Medicare and Medicaid is subject to potential retroactive reduction.

Payments we receive from Medicare and Medicaid can be retroactively adjusted after examination 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 either adequate or additional documentation was not provided or because certain services were not covered or deemed to not be medically necessary. Significant adjustments, recoupments or repayments of our Medicare or Medicaid revenue, and the costs associated with complying with investigative audits 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 audits, of payments from payor sources that were either wholly or partially in excess of the amount that we should have been paid for the service provided. Overpayments may result from a variety of factors, including insufficient documentation supporting the services rendered or medical necessity of the 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 the law could lead to significant fines and penalties being imposed on us. Furthermore, our 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 as well, 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 such amounts, as well as any fines, penalties or other sanctions that we may incur, could be significant and could have a material and adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

From time to time, we are also involved in various external governmental investigations, audits and reviews. Reviews, audits and investigations of this sort can lead to government 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 investigations, audits and reviews can also require us to incur significant legal and document production expenses as we cooperate with the government 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.

Substantially all of our revenues are derived from private and governmental third-party payors. In 2023, approximately 63.4% of our revenues were derived collectively from managed care plans, commercial health insurers, workers’ compensation payors, and other private pay revenue sources while approximately 36.6% of our revenues were derived from Medicare and Medicaid. Initiatives undertaken by industry and government to contain healthcare costs affect the profitability of our clinics. These payors attempt to control healthcare costs by contracting with healthcare providers to obtain services on a discounted basis. We believe that this trend will continue and may limit reimbursement for healthcare services. 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.

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In recent years, through legislative and regulatory actions, the federal government has made substantial changes to various payment systems under the Medicare program. See “Business—Sources of Revenue – Physical Therapy Services” in Item 1 for more information including changes to Medicare reimbursement. Additional reforms or other changes to these payment systems may be proposed or adopted, either by the U.S. Congress or by 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.

Our facilities are subject to extensive federal and state laws and regulations relating to the privacy of individually identifiable patient information.

HIPAA required the HHS to adopt standards to protect the privacy and security of individually identifiable health-related information. The department released final regulations containing privacy standards in 2000 and published revisions to the final regulations in 2002. 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. 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.

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 action 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, 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.

We are subject to risks associated with public health crises and epidemics/pandemics, such as the novel strain of coronavirus (“COVID-19”).

Our operations expose us to risks associated with public health crises and epidemics/pandemics, such as COVID-19 that has spread globally. A public health crisis may lead to disruption and volatility in the global capital markets, which increases the cost of, and adversely impacts access to, capital and increases economic uncertainty. A future public health crisis could have an adverse impact on our operations and supply chains, including a temporary loss of physical therapists and other employees who are infected or quarantined for a period of time, an increase in cancellations of physical therapy patient appointments and a decline in the scheduling of new or additional patient appointments.

We expect 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 both 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, most notably Texas, 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. 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 businesses, our business and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected.

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As a result of increased post-payment reviews of claims we submit to Medicare for our services, we may incur additional costs and may be required to repay amounts already paid to us.

We are subject to regular post-payment inquiries, investigations, and audits of the claims we submit to Medicare for payment for our services. These post-payment reviews have increased as a result of government cost-containment initiatives. These additional post-payment reviews may require us to incur additional costs to respond to requests for records and to pursue the reversal of payment denials, and ultimately may require us to refund amounts paid to us by Medicare that are determined to have been overpaid.

For a further description of this and other laws and regulations involving governmental reimbursements, see “Business—Sources of Revenue” and “—Regulation and Healthcare Reform” in Item 1.

An economic downturn, state budget pressures, sustained unemployment and continued deficit spending by the federal government may result in a reduction in reimbursement and covered services.

An economic downturn, including the consequences of a pandemic, such as COVID-19, could have a detrimental effect on our revenues. Historically, state budget pressures have translated into reductions in state spending. Given that Medicaid outlays are a significant component of state budgets, we can expect continuing cost containment pressures on Medicaid outlays for our services in the states in which we operate. 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.

The existing federal deficit, as well as deficit spending by federal and state governments as the result of adverse developments in the economy or other reasons, can lead to continuing pressure to reduce governmental expenditures for other purposes, including government-funded programs in which we participate, such as Medicare and Medicaid. Such actions in turn may adversely affect our results of operations.

We may be required to comply with a put right in one of our acquisition agreements, related to a potential future purchase of a majority interest in a separate company.

One of our acquisition agreements includes a put right for the potential future purchase of a majority interest in a separate company at a purchase price which is derived based on a specified multiple of the separate company’s historical earnings. The exercise of the put right is outside of our control. In the event the put right is triggered, we are required to purchase the aforementioned equity interest at a calculated purchase price. The resulting purchase price may be greater than the fair value of such equity interests at the time, and we may or may not have the capital necessary to satisfy such contractual purchase obligation, in which case we could be in breach.

Our debt and financial obligations could adversely affect our financial condition, our ability to obtain future financing, and our ability to operate our business.

We have outstanding debt obligations that could adversely affect our financial condition and limit our ability to successfully implement our business strategy. Furthermore, from time to time, we may need additional financing to support our business and pursue our business strategy, including strategic acquisitions. Our ability to obtain additional financing, if and when required, will depend on investor demand, our operating performance, the condition of the capital markets, and other factors. We cannot provide assurances that additional financing will be available to us on favorable terms when required, or at all.

Our loan agreements contain certain restrictions and requirements that among other things:

•	require us to maintain a quarterly fixed charge coverage ratio and minimum working capital ratio;

•	limit our ability to obtain additional financing in the future for working capital, capital expenditures and acquisitions, to fund growth or for general corporate purposes;

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•	limit our future ability to refinance our indebtedness on terms acceptable to us or at all;

•	limit our flexibility in planning for or reacting to changes in our business and market conditions or in funding our strategic growth plan; and

•	impose on us financial and operational restrictions.

Our ability to meet our debt service obligations will depend on our future performance, which will be affected by the other risk factors described herein. If we do not generate enough cash flow to pay our debt service obligations, we may be required to refinance all or part of our existing debt, sell our assets, borrow more money or raise equity. There is no guarantee that we will be able to take any of these actions on a timely basis, on terms satisfactory to us, or at all.

If we fail to satisfy our debt service obligations or the other restrictions and requirements in our loan agreements, we could be in default. Unless cured or waived, a default would permit lenders to accelerate the maturity of the debt under the credit agreement and to foreclose upon the collateral securing the debt.

Our outstanding loans bear interest at variable rates. In response to the variable rates, we entered into an interest rate swap agreement. We are exposed to certain market risks during the ordinary course of business due to adverse changes in interest rates. The exposure to interest rate risk primarily results from our variable-rate borrowing. Fluctuations in interest rates can be volatile and the Company’s risk management activities do not eliminate these risks. In May 2022, we entered into an interest rate swap agreement to manage these risks. While intended to reduce the effects of fluctuations in these prices and rates, these transactions may limit our potential gains or expose us to losses. If our counterparties to such transactions or the sponsors fail to honor their obligations due to financial distress, we would be exposed to potential losses or the inability to recover anticipated gains from these transactions.

Some of our acquisition agreements contain contingent consideration, the value of which may impact future financial results.

Some of our acquisition agreements include contingent earn-out consideration, the fair value of which is estimated as of the acquisition date based on the present value of the expected contingent payments as determined using weighted probabilities of possible future payments. These fair value estimates contain unobservable inputs and estimates that could materially differ from the actual future results and we cannot predict the ultimate result. The fair value of the contingent earn-out consideration could increase or decrease, as applicable. Changes in the fair value of contingent earn-outs will be reflected in our results of operations in the period in which they are recognized, the amount of which may be material and could cause volatility in our operating results.

Impact on the business and cash reserves resulting from retirement or resignation of key partners and resulting purchase of their non-controlling interests (minority interests).

As described in Note 6 to our financial statements included in Item 8, the redeemable non-controlling interests in our partnerships are held by our partners. Upon the occurrence of certain events, such as retirement or other termination of employment, partners from acquired partnerships may have the right to exercise a “put” to cause us to purchase their redeemable non-controlling interests. Depending on the amount and timing of the exercise of any “put” rights, the funds required could have an adverse impact on our capital structure.

Healthcare reform legislation may affect our business.

In recent years, many legislative proposals have been introduced or proposed in Congress and in some state legislatures that would affect major changes in the healthcare system, either nationally or at the state level. At the federal level, Congress has continued to propose or consider healthcare budgets that substantially reduce payments under the Medicare programs. See “Business—Our Operating Segments – Physical Therapy Operations-Sources of Revenue” in Item 1 for more information. The ultimate content, timing or effect of any healthcare reform legislation and the impact of potential legislation on us is uncertain and difficult, if not impossible, to predict. That impact may be material to our business, financial condition or results of operations.

Our operations are subject to extensive regulation.

The healthcare industry is subject to extensive federal, state and local laws and regulations relating to:

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•	facility and professional licensure/permits, including certificates of need;

•	conduct of operations, including financial relationships among healthcare providers, Medicare fraud and abuse, and physician self-referral;

•	addition of facilities and services; and

•	coding, billing and payment for services.

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. 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. For a more complete description of certain of these laws and regulations, see “Business—Regulation and Healthcare Reform” and “Business—Compliance Program” in Item 1.

Both federal and state regulatory agencies inspect, survey, and audit our facilities to review our compliance with these laws and regulations. While our facilities intend to comply with the existing licensing, Medicare certification requirements and accreditation standards, there can be no assurance that these regulatory authorities will determine that all applicable requirements are fully met at any given time. A determination by any of these regulatory authorities that a facility is not in compliance with these requirements could lead to the imposition of requirements that the facility takes corrective action, assessment of fines and penalties, or loss of licensure or Medicare certification of accreditation. These consequences could have an adverse effect on us.

Our operations are subject to investigations, legal actions and proceedings that could result in an adverse impact on our business and financial position.

Healthcare providers are subject to investigations, legal actions and proceedings, as well as lawsuits under the qui tam provisions of the federal False Claims Act, based on claims that the provider failed to comply with applicable laws and regulations that govern coding and the submission of claims for services provided to Medicare patients, among other things. These matters can involve significant costs, monetary damages and penalties. We have been subject to these proceedings in the past, and future proceedings could result in an adverse impact on our business and financial results.

We face inspections, reviews, audits and investigations under federal and state government programs and contracts. These audits could have adverse findings that may negatively affect our business.

•	refunding amounts we have been paid pursuant to the Medicare or Medicaid programs or from managed care payors;

•	state or federal agencies imposing fines, penalties and other sanctions on us;

•	temporary suspension of payment for new patients to the facility or agency;

•	decertification or exclusion from participation in the Medicare or Medicaid programs or one or more managed care payor networks;

•	the imposition of a new Corporate Integrity Agreement;

•	damage to our reputation;

•	the revocation of a facility’s or agency’s license; and

•	loss of certain rights under, or termination of, our contracts with managed care payors.

If adverse inspections, reviews, audits or investigations occur and any of the results noted above occur, it could have a material adverse effect on our business and operating results.

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In conducting our business, we are required to comply with applicable laws regarding fee-splitting and the corporate practice of medicine.

Some states prohibit the “corporate practice of therapy” that restricts business corporations from providing physical therapy services through the direct employment of therapist physicians or from exercising control over medical decisions by therapists. The laws relating to corporate practice vary from state to state and are not fully developed in each state in which we have facilities. Typically, however, professional corporations owned and controlled by licensed professionals are exempt from corporate practice restrictions and may employ therapists to furnish professional services. Those professional corporations may be managed by business corporations, such as the Company.

Some states also prohibit entities from engaging in certain financial arrangements, such as fee-splitting, with physicians or therapists. The laws relating to fee-splitting also vary from state to state and are not fully developed. Generally, these laws restrict business arrangements that involve a physician or therapist sharing medical fees with a referral source, but in some states, these laws have been interpreted to extend to management agreements between physicians or therapists and business entities under some circumstances.

We believe that our current and planned activities do not constitute fee-splitting or the unlawful corporate practice of medicine as contemplated by these state laws. However, there can be no assurance that future interpretations of such laws will not require structural and organizational modification of our existing relationships with the practices. If a court or regulatory body determines that we have violated these laws or if new laws are introduced that would render our arrangements illegal, we 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 affiliated physicians and other licensed providers.

We may be adversely affected by a security breach, such as a cyber-attack, 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 information technology systems hold sensitive patient information including patient demographic data and other protected health information, which is 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 patient’s and employee’s personal information.

Our information technology systems and those of our vendors that process, maintain, and transmit such data are subject to computer viruses, cyber-attacks, or breaches. We adhere to policies and procedures designed to ensure compliance with HIPAA and other privacy and information security laws and require our third-party vendors to do so as well. If, however, we or our third-party vendors experience a breach, loss, or other compromise of unsecured protected health information or other personal information, such an event could result in 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.

Furthermore, while our information technology systems, and those of our third-party vendors, are maintained with safeguards protecting against cyber-attacks. A cyber-attack that bypasses our information technology security systems, or those of our third-party vendors, could result in a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, or cash flows. In addition, 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 information technology systems and subsequent mitigation activities, or regulatory action taken as a result of such incident. 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 operations.

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We depend upon the cultivation and maintenance of relationships with the physicians in our markets.

Our success is dependent upon referrals from physicians in the communities our clinics serve and our ability to maintain good relations 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 practice. If we are unable to successfully cultivate and maintain strong relationships with physicians and other referral sources, our business may decrease, and our net operating revenues may decline.

Our business depends upon hiring, training, and retaining qualified employees.

Our workforce costs represent our largest operating expense, and our ability to meet our labor needs while controlling labor costs is subject to numerous external factors, including market pressures with respect to prevailing wage rates and unemployment levels. We compete with rehabilitation companies and other businesses for many of our clinical and non-clinical employees, and turnover in these positions can lead to increased training and retention costs, particularly in a competitive labor market. We cannot be assured that we can continue to hire, train and retain qualified employees at current wage rates since we operate in a competitive labor market, and there are currently significant inflationary and other pressures on wages. If we are unable to hire, properly train and retain qualified employees, we could experience higher employment costs and reduced revenues, which could adversely affect our earnings.

We depend upon our ability to recruit and retain experienced physical therapists.

Our revenue generation is dependent upon referrals from physicians in the communities our clinics serve, and our ability to maintain good relations with these physicians. Our therapists are the front line for generating these referrals and we are dependent on their talents and skills to successfully cultivate and maintain strong relationships with these physicians. If we cannot recruit and retain our base of experienced and clinically skilled therapists, our business may decrease, and our net operating revenues may decline. Periodically, we have clinics in isolated communities that are temporarily unable to operate due to the unavailability of a therapist who satisfies our standards.

We may also experience increases in our labor costs, primarily due to higher wages and greater benefits required to attract and retain qualified healthcare personnel, 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.

Failure to maintain effective internal control over our financial reporting could have an adverse effect on our ability to report our financial results on a timely and accurate basis.

We are required to produce our consolidated financial statements in accordance with the requirements of accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America. Effective internal control over financial reporting is necessary for us to provide reliable financial reports, to help mitigate the risk of fraud and to operate successfully. We are required by federal securities laws to document and test our internal control procedures in order to satisfy the requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, which requires annual management assessments of the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting.

We may not be able to conclude on an ongoing basis that we have effective internal control over financial reporting in accordance with applicable law, or our independent registered public accounting firm may not be able to issue an unqualified attestation report if we conclude that our internal control over financial reporting is not effective. If we fail to maintain effective internal control over financial reporting, or our independent registered public accounting firm is unable to provide us with an unqualified attestation report on our internal control, we could be required to take costly and time-consuming corrective measures, be required to restate the affected historical financial statements, be subjected to investigations and/or sanctions by federal and state securities regulators, and be subjected to civil lawsuits by security holders. Any of the foregoing could also cause investors to lose confidence in our reported financial information and in us and would likely result in a decline in the market price of our stock and in our ability to raise additional financing if needed in the future.

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Our revenues may fluctuate due to weather.

We have a significant number of clinics in states that normally experience snow and ice during the winter months. Also, a significant number of our clinics are located in states along the Gulf Coast and Atlantic Coast which are subject to periodic winter storms, hurricanes and other severe storm systems. Periods of severe weather may cause physical damage to our facilities or prevent our staff or patients from traveling to our clinics, which may cause a decrease in our net operating revenues.

We operate in a highly competitive industry.

We encounter competition from local, regional or national entities, some of which have superior resources or other competitive advantages. Intense competition may adversely affect our business, financial condition or results of operations. For a more complete description of this competitive environment, see “Business—Competition” in Item 1. An adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations may require us to write down goodwill.

We may incur closure costs and losses.

The competitive, economic or reimbursement conditions in our markets in which we operate may require us to reorganize or to close certain clinics. In the event a clinic is reorganized or closed, we may incur losses and closure costs. The closure costs and losses may include, but are not limited to, lease obligations, severance, and write-down or write-off of goodwill and other intangible assets.

Future acquisitions may use significant resources, may be unsuccessful and could expose us to unforeseen liabilities.

As part of our growth strategy, we intend to continue pursuing acquisitions of outpatient physical therapy clinics and industrial injury prevention services businesses. There can be no assurance that we will be able to successfully identify or complete future 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 involve numerous risks, including:

•	the difficulty and expense of integrating acquired personnel into our business;

•	the diversion of management’s time from existing operations;

•	the potential loss of key employees of acquired companies;

•	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.

Employer and other contracted customers may terminate their relationship with us which could adversely affect the business.

In our industrial injury prevention services business, we perform services for large employers and their employees pursuant to contracts and other services agreement. These contracts and other services agreements are able to be terminated by the employer-clients on little or short notice, and either a breach or termination of those contractual arrangements by such clients could cause operating results to be less than expected. Similarly, in our rehabilitation business, we have management and other services agreements with hospitals, physician groups and other ancillary providers; either a breach or termination of those contractual arrangements by such clients could cause operating results to be less than expected.

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RISKS RELATED TO OUR COMMON STOCK

Issuance of shares in connection with financing transactions or under stock incentive plans will dilute current stockholders.

Pursuant to our stock incentive plans, our Compensation Committee of the Board, consisting solely of independent directors, is authorized to grant stock awards to our employees, directors and consultants. Shareholders will incur dilution upon the exercise of any outstanding stock awards or the grant of any restricted stock. In addition, if we raise additional funds by issuing additional common stock, or securities convertible into or exchangeable or exercisable for common stock, further dilution to our existing stockholders will result, and new investors could have rights superior to existing stockholders.

The number of shares of our common stock eligible for future sale could adversely affect the market price of our stock.

On December 31, 2023, we had reserved approximately 513,193 shares for future equity grants. We may issue additional restricted securities or register additional shares of common stock under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), in the future. The issuance of a significant number of shares of common stock upon the exercise of stock options or the availability for sale, or sale, of a substantial number of the shares of common stock eligible for future sale under effective registration statements, under Rule 144 or otherwise, could adversely affect the market price of the common stock.

Provisions in our articles of incorporation and bylaws could delay or prevent a change in control of our company, even if that change would be beneficial to our stockholders.

Certain provisions of our articles of incorporation and bylaws may delay, discourage, prevent or render more difficult an attempt to obtain control of our company, whether through a tender offer, business combination, proxy contest or otherwise. These provisions include the charter authorization of “blank check” preferred stock and a restriction on the ability of stockholders to call a special meeting.

ITEM 1B.

UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

None.

ITEM 1C.

CYBERSECURITY

RISK MANAGEMENT AND STRATEGY

The Company recognizes the critical importance of developing, implementing, and maintaining robust cybersecurity measures to safeguard our information systems and protect the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of our patients’ health information and all our data.

Managing Material Risks & Integrated Overall Risk Management

The Company has strategically integrated cybersecurity risk management into our broader risk management framework to promote a company-wide culture of cybersecurity risk management. Cybersecurity considerations are an integral part of our decision-making processes where communication, data and access are involved. Our Information technology (“IT”) department works closely with our operations teams to continuously evaluate and address cybersecurity risks in alignment with our business and operational objectives. Our Chief Information Systems Officer, (“CISO”) and IT teams play an important role in assessing the cybersecurity infrastructure employed within our acquired practices to ensure that necessary security enhancements are employed in a timely manner. The Company provides annual cybersecurity awareness training to its employees to mitigate risks by educating employees regarding best practices to avoid cybersecurity related breaches.

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Engage Third-parties on Risk Management

Understanding the ever-changing and complex nature of cybersecurity threats, our organization values collaboration with external experts, including cybersecurity consultants, for advisory purposes. These collaborations are aimed at enhancing our understanding and management of cybersecurity risks. Through such engagements, we seek to gain insights and recommendations on improving our risk management frameworks and responses to potential cybersecurity incidents.

This approach allows us to benefit from specialized expertise, helping ensure that our cybersecurity strategies and processes are informed by current industry insights. While these collaborations are not mandated, they are encouraged as part of our commitment to maintaining a vigilant and adaptive cybersecurity posture in line with evolving best practices.

Oversee Third-party Risk

Aware of the potential risks posed by third-party service providers, our Company takes steps to perform security-related diligence on such providers. This diligence process aims to understand and evaluate the security measures and practices of our third-party partners. Our approach includes reviewing available information and seeking insights into their security and data management practices. This method is part of our broader strategy to mitigate the risks associated with data breaches or other security incidents that may arise from third-party engagements.

Risks from Cybersecurity Threats

We have not encountered cybersecurity challenges that have materially impaired our operations or financial standing. While we have experienced cybersecurity incidents within several of our partnership subsidiaries over the years, these incidents have not been material, as each incident (i) has been isolated to certain segregated IT environments, (ii) has affected relatively few patients and their associated health information, and/or (iii) had a low probability of compromised data. Each of the foregoing cybersecurity incidents has been remediated in the ordinary course of business. However, we could experience a cybersecurity incident that materially affects us in the future. See “Risk Factors” in Item 1A on this Form-10K for additional discussion of cybersecurity risks to our business.

Governance

The Board of Directors recognizes the significance of cybersecurity threats to the Company’s operational integrity, data security and stakeholders. The Board of Directors is acutely aware of the critical nature of managing risks associated with cybersecurity threats and sees this as a major priority for the company. The Board has established oversight mechanisms to ensure effective governance in managing risks associated with cybersecurity threats.

Board of Directors Oversight

The Compliance Committee is central to the Board’s oversight of cybersecurity risks and bears the primary responsibility for this domain. The Compliance Committee is composed of board members with diverse expertise, including risk management, technology, health care operations, and finance, equipping them to oversee cybersecurity risks effectively. In addition, each of the directors on the Compliance Committee has completed the Diligent Cyber Risk and Strategy Certification Program, developed by Diligent Corporation, a leading corporate governance technology company, which teaches cyber literacy for corporate directors to effectively govern significant enterprise-wide cyber risks and have meaningful conversations with management.

Management’s Role Managing Risk

The CISO plays a pivotal role in informing the Compliance Committee on cybersecurity risks. The CISO, in concert with the Chief Compliance Officer and General Counsel, provides comprehensive briefings to the Compliance Committee on a regular basis. These briefings encompass a broad range of topics, including:

●

Current cybersecurity landscape and emerging threats;

●

Status of ongoing cybersecurity initiatives and strategies;

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Incident reports and learnings from any cybersecurity events; and

●

Compliance with regulatory requirements and industry standards.

In addition to our scheduled meetings, the Compliance Committee and management maintain an ongoing dialogue regarding emerging or potential cybersecurity risks. The Compliance Committee actively participates in strategic decisions related to cybersecurity. This involvement ensures that cybersecurity considerations are integrated into the Company’s broader strategic objectives.

Risk Management Personnel

Primary responsibility for assessing, monitoring and managing our cybersecurity risks rests with the CISO, Mr. Chadd Pence. With over 25 years of experience in the field of IT and cybersecurity, Mr. Pence brings a wealth of expertise to his role. His background includes experience as an enterprise CISO and his knowledge and experience are instrumental in developing and executing our cybersecurity strategies. Our CISO oversees our cybersecurity efforts and governance programs, tests our compliance with standards, remediates known risks, and provides regular guidance to management and the Board on these areas. In addition, to supplement this expertise, we periodically engage external experts, including cybersecurity consultants, to help us evaluate our risk management related policies and to help us to review and remediate cybersecurity incidents.

Monitor Cybersecurity Incidents

The CISO is continually informed about the latest developments in cybersecurity, including potential threats and innovative risk management techniques. This ongoing knowledge acquisition is crucial for the effective prevention, detection, mitigation, and remediation of cybersecurity incidents. The CISO implements and oversees processes for the regular monitoring of our information systems. This includes the deployment of a variety of security measures and system audits to identify potential vulnerabilities. In the event of a cybersecurity incident, the CISO is equipped with a well-defined incident response plan. This plan includes immediate actions to mitigate the impact and long-term strategies for remediation and prevention of future incidents.

Reporting to Board of Directors

The CISO, in his capacity, regularly informs our Chief Financial Officer and Chief Executive Officer of all aspects related to cybersecurity risks and incidents. This ensures that the highest levels of management are kept abreast of the cybersecurity posture and potential risks facing the Company. Furthermore, significant cybersecurity matters, and strategic risk management decisions are escalated to the Compliance Committee and the full Board of Directors, ensuring that they have comprehensive oversight and can provide guidance on critical cybersecurity issues.

ITEM 2.

PROPERTIES

We lease the properties used for our clinics under non-cancelable operating leases with terms ranging from one to seven years, with the exception of the property for one clinic which we own. We intend to lease the premises for any new clinic location except in rare instances where leasing is not a cost-effective alternative. Our typical clinic occupies 1,000 to 7,000 square feet of leased space in an office building or shopping center. There are 25 clinics occupying space in the range of over 7,000 square feet to16,500 square feet.

We also lease our executive offices located in Houston, Texas, under a non-cancelable operating lease expiring in February 2028. We currently lease approximately 44,000 square feet of space (including allocations for common areas) at our executive offices.

ITEM 3.

LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

We are a party to various legal actions, proceedings, and claims (some of which are not insured), and regulatory and other governmental audits and investigations in the ordinary course of our business. We cannot predict the ultimate outcome of pending litigation, proceedings, regulatory and other governmental audits and investigations. These matters could potentially subject the Company to sanctions, damages, recoupments, fines, and other penalties. The Department of Justice, CMS, or other federal and state enforcement and regulatory agencies may conduct additional investigations related to our businesses in the future that may, either individually or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on our business, financial position, results of operations, and liquidity.

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Healthcare providers are subject to lawsuits under the qui tam provisions of the federal False Claims Act. Qui tam lawsuits typically remain under seal for some time while the government decides whether or not to intervene on behalf of a private qui tam plaintiff (known as a relator) and take the lead in the litigation. These lawsuits can involve significant monetary damages and penalties and award bounties to private plaintiffs who successfully bring the suits. We have been a defendant in these cases in the past and may be named as a defendant in similar cases from time to time in the future.

Prior Florida Legal Matter

In 2019, a qui tam lawsuit (“the Complaint”) was filed by a relator on behalf of the United States against us and one of our Florida majority-owned subsidiaries (the “Hale Partnership”). This whistleblower lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, seeking damages and civil penalties under the federal False Claim Act. The U.S Government declined to intervene in the case and unsealed the Complaint in July 2019. The Complaint alleged that the Hale Partnership engaged in conduct to purposely “upcode” its billings for services provided to Medicare patients. The plaintiff-relator also claimed that similar false claims occurred on other days and at other Company-owned partnerships.

In January 2022, we entered into a settlement agreement with the plaintiff-relator. In the settlement agreement, the plaintiff-relator released all defendants from liability for all conduct alleged in the Complaint, and the Company admitted no liability or wrongdoing. In connection with the settlement, the Office of the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Texas agreed to a dismissal of the claims against the Hale Partnership and the Company. Under the terms of the settlement, we agreed to make aggregate payments to the government, the plaintiff-relator and her counsel of $2.8 million.

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

Our common stock has traded on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) since August 14, 2012, under the symbol “USPH.” Prior to that, our common stock was traded on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol “USPH”. As of February 29, 2024, there were 83 holders of record of our outstanding common stock.

DIVIDENDS

Our Board of Directors declared the following dividends during the year ended December 31, 2023:

Declaration Date	Record Date	Payment Date	Dividend Per Share		Aggregate Amount (in thousands)
02/21/2023	03/10/2023	04/07/2023	$	0.43	$	5,617
05/02/2023	05/18/2023	06/09/2023	$	0.43	$	5,621
08/07/2023	08/18/2023	09/08/2023	$	0.43	$	6,445
11/06/2023	11/16/2023	12/08/2023	$	0.43	$	6,445

There is no assurance that future dividends will be declared. The declaration and payment of dividends in the future are at the discretion of our Board of Directors after taking into account various factors, including, but not limited to, our financial condition, operating results, available cash and current and anticipated cash needs, and the terms of our Credit Agreement (as defined in “Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Liquidity and Capital Resources”). We are currently restricted from paying dividends on our common stock in excess of $50,000,000 in any fiscal year on our common stock under the Credit Agreement.

FIVE YEAR PERFORMANCE GRAPH

The following performance graph compares the cumulative total stockholder return of our common stock to The NYSE Composite Index and the NYSE Health Care Index for the period from December 31, 2018 through December 31, 2023. The graph assumes that $100 was invested in our common stock and the common stock of each of the companies listed on The NYSE Composite Index and The NYSE Health Care Index on December 31, 2018 and that any dividends were reinvested.

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Comparison of Five Years Cumulative Total Return for the Year Ended December 31, 2023

	12/18	12/19	12/20	12/21	12/22	12/23
U. S. Physical Therapy, Inc.	100	112	117	93	79	91
NYSE Healthcare Index	100	119	132	161	155	159

The foregoing performance graph and related description shall not be deemed incorporated by reference into any filing under the Securities Act or under the Exchange Act, except to the extent that we specifically incorporate this information by reference. In addition, the performance graph and the related description shall not be deemed “soliciting material” or “filed” with the SEC or subject to Regulation 14A or 14C.

ITEM 6.

RESERVED

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ITEM 7.

MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

The following discussion and analysis of U.S. Physical Therapy, Incl and its subsidiaries (herein referred to as “we”, “us”, “our” or the “Company”) should be read in conjunction with the Company’s consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. Some of the information contained in this discussion and analysis, including information with respect to our plans and strategy for our business, includes forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. You should review the “Risk Factors” and “Forward-Looking Statements” sections of this Annual Report on Form 10-K for a discussion of important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the results described in or implied by the forward-looking statements contained in the following discussion and analysis.

This section of this Annual Report on Form 10-K generally discusses 2023 and 2022 items and year-to-year comparisons between 2023 and 2022. Discussions of 2021 items and year-to-year comparisons between 2022 and 2021 can be found in “Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in Part II, Item 7 of the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 28, 2023.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

We operate our business through our reportable segments which include the (1) physical therapy operations segment and (2) the industrial injury prevention services (“IIP”) segment. Our physical therapy operations consist of physical therapy and occupational therapy clinics that provide pre-and post-operative care and treatment for orthopedic-related disorders, sports-related injuries, preventive care, rehabilitation of injured workers and neurological injuries. Services provided by the IIP segment include onsite injury prevention and rehabilitation, performance optimization, post-offer employment testing, functional evaluations and ergonomic assessments. The majority of these services are contracted with and paid for directly by employers, including a number of Fortune 500 companies. Other clients include large insurers and their contractors. These services are performed through Industrial Sports Medicine Professionals, consisting of both physical therapists and specialized certified athletic trainers (“ATCs”).

During the last three years, we completed the following acquisitions of clinic practices and IIP businesses detailed below:

		% Interest	Number of
Acquisition	Date	Acquired	Clinics
October 2023 Acquisition	October 31, 2023	**	*
September 2023 Acquisition 1	September 29, 2023	70%	4
September 2023 Acquisition 2	September 29, 2023	70%	1
July 2023 Acquisition	July 31, 2023	70%	7
May 2023 Acquisition	May 31, 2023	45%	4
February 2023 Acquisition	February 28, 2023	80%	1
November 2022 Acquisition	November 30, 2022	80%	13
October 2022 Acquisition	October 31, 2022	60%	14
September 2022 Acquisition	September 30, 2022	80%	2
August 2022 Acquisition	August 31, 2022	70%	6
March 2022 Acquisition	March 31, 2022	70%	6
December 2021 Acquisition	December 31, 2021	75%	3
November 2021 Acquisition	November 30, 2021	70%	*
September 2021 Acquisition	September 30, 2021	100%	*
June 2021 Acquisition	June 30, 2021	65%	8
March 2021 Acquisition	March 31, 2021	70%	6

*	IIP business

**	On October 31, 2023, we concurrently acquired 100% of an IIP business and a 55% equity interest in an ergonomics software business (“October 2023 Acquisition”).

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The following table provides a roll forward of our clinic count for the periods presented.

	For the Year Ended
	December 31, 2023			December 31, 2022			December 31, 2021
Number of clinics, beginning of period		640			591			554
Additions		46			65			42
Closed or sold		(15	)		(16	)		(5	)
Number of clinics, end of period		671			640			591

In May 2023, we completed a secondary offering of 1,916,667 shares of its common stock at an offering price of $90.00 per share. Upon completion of the offering, we received net proceeds of approximately $163.6 million, after deducting an underwriting discount of $8.6 million and recognizing related fees and expenses of $0.2 million. A portion of the net proceeds was used to repay the $35.0 million then outstanding under our credit agreement while the remainder is expected to be used primarily for additional acquisitions.

Our Board of Directors raised our quarterly dividend to $0.44 per share, on February 27, 2024, and declared a quarterly dividend for the first quarter of 2024 at the higher rate.

Medicare Reimbursement

The Medicare program reimburses outpatient rehabilitation providers based on the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (“MPFS”). Outpatient rehabilitation providers may enroll in Medicare as institutional outpatient rehabilitation facilities (i.e., rehab agencies) or individual physical or occupational therapists in private practice. The majority of our clinicians are enrolled as individual physical or occupational therapists in private practice while the remaining balance of providers are reimbursed through enrolled rehab agencies. The following is a summary of significant regulatory changes which have affected our results of operations as well as the policies and payment rates that may affect our future results of operations.

For calendar years 2021 and 2022, CMS’s expected decreases in Medicare reimbursement were mostly offset by one-time increases in payments as a result of other legislation passed by Congress. Payments under the 2023 MPFS physician fee schedule decreased by 2%, and for calendar year 2024, CMS’s final policies for 2024 will result in an approximately 3.5% decrease in Medicare payments for the therapy specialty.

In the final 2020 MPFS rule, CMS clarified that when the physical therapist is involved for the entire duration of the service and the physical therapist assistant (“PTA”) provides skilled therapy alongside the physical therapist, the CQ modifier is not required. Also, when the same service (code) is furnished separately by the physical therapist and PTA, CMS applies the de minimis standard to each 15-minute unit of codes, not on the total physical therapist and PTA time of the service. For dates of service on and after January 1, 2022, CMS pays for physical therapy and occupational therapy services provided by PTAs and occupational therapist assistants (“OTAs”) at 85% of the otherwise applicable Part B payment amount. CMS allows a timed service to be billed without the CQ or CO modifier when a PTA or OTA participates in providing care, but the physical therapist or occupational therapist meets the Medicare billing requirements without including the PTA’s or OTA’s minutes. This occurs when the physical therapist or occupational therapist provides more minutes than the 15-minute midpoint. The calendar year 2024 MPFS final rule did not contain any policy changes concerning the modifiers for services provided by physical therapy and occupational therapy assistants.

RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

The defined terms with their respective description used in the following discussion are listed below:

Mature Clinics are clinics opened or acquired prior to January 1, 2022, and are still operating as of December 31, 2023.

Net rate per patient visit is net patient revenue related to our physical therapy operations divided by total number of patient visits (defined below) during the periods presented.

Patient visits is the number of unique patient visits during the periods presented.

Average daily visits per clinic is patient visits divided by the number of days in which normal business operations were conducted during the periods presented and further divided by the average number clinics in operation during the periods presented.

Full Year 2023 refers to the year ended December 31, 2023.

Full Year 2022 refers to the year ended December 31, 2022.

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Full Year 2023 versus Full Year 2022

Total net revenue for the Full Year 2023 increased $51.7 million, or 9.3%, to $604.8 million from $553.1 million for the Full Year 2022 while operating costs increased $42.2 million, or 9.6%, to $483.3 million from $441.1 million over the same periods, respectively. Total operating cost was $483.3 million for the 2023 Year, or 79.9% of total revenue, as compared to $441.1million or 79.7% of total revenue for the 2022 Year. Gross profit for the Full Year 2023 was $121.5 million, or 20.1% of net revenue, compared to $112.0 million for the Full Year 2022, or 20.3% of net revenue.

Net income attributable to our shareholders (“USPH net income”) was $28.2 million for Full Year 2023 compared to $32.2 million for Full Year 2022. USPH net income included a non-cash impairment charge, prior to allocation to non-controlling interest and income taxes, of $17.5 million in the year ended December 31, 2023 ($9.1 million net of $5.2 million allocated to non-controlling interest and $3.1 million income tax) and $9.1 million in the year ended December 31, 2022 ($4.7 million net of $2.7 million allocated to non-controlling interest and $1.6 million income tax). In accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (“GAAP”), the revaluation of non-controlling interest, net of taxes, is not included in net income but is charged directly to retained earnings; however, this change is included in the computation of earnings per share. Earnings per share for Full Year 2023 were $1.28 compared to $2.25 for Full Year 2022.

	For the Year Ended
	December 31, 2023			December 31, 2022
	(In thousands, except per share data)
Earnings per share
Computation of earnings per share - USPH shareholders:
Net income attributable to USPH shareholders	$	28,239		$	32,158
Charges to retained earnings:
Revaluation of redeemable non-controlling interest		(13,565	)		(3,890	)
Tax effect at statutory rate (federal and state)		3,466			994
	$	18,140		$	29,262

Earnings per share (basic and diluted)	$	1.28		$	2.25

Shares used in computation - basic and diluted		14,188			12,985

Non-GAAP Measures

We use Adjusted EBITDA and Operating Results, non-GAAP measures, which eliminate certain items described below that can be subject to volatility and unusual costs, as the principal measures to evaluate and monitor financial performance period over period. We believe that Adjusted EBITDA and Operating Results are useful measures for investors to use in comparing the Company's period-to-period results as well as for comparing with other similar businesses since most do not have redeemable instruments and therefore have different equity structures.

Adjusted EBITDA is defined as net income attributable to our shareholders before interest income, interest expense, taxes, depreciation, amortization, non-cash asset impairment charge, change in fair value of contingent earn-out consideration, Relief Funds, changes in revaluation of put-right liability, equity-based awards compensation expense, and related portions for non-controlling interests.

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Operating Results equals net income attributable to our shareholders less non-cash asset impairment charge, changes in revaluation of put-right liability, Relief Funds, changes in fair value of contingent earn-out consideration, and any allocations to non-controlling interests, all net of taxes. Operating Results per share also exclude the impact of the revaluation of redeemable non-controlling interest and the associated tax impact.

The tables below reconcile net income attributable to our shareholders calculated in accordance with GAAP to Operating Results and Adjusted EBITDA.

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ADJUSTED EBITDA AND OPERATING RESULTS

(IN THOUSANDS, EXCEPT PER SHARE DATA)

(unaudited)

	For the Year Ended
	December 31, 2023			December 31, 2022
	(In thousands, except per share data)
Adjusted EBITDA (a non-GAAP measure)
Net income attributable to USPH shareholders	$	28,239		$	32,158
Adjustments:
Provision for income taxes		12,156			12,164
Depreciation and amortization		15,695			14,743
Interest expense, debt and other, net		9,303			5,779
Interest income from investments		(3,774	)		-
Impairment of goodwill and other intangible assets		17,495			9,112
Equity-based awards compensation expense		7,236			7,264
Change in revaluation of put-right liability		(2,582	)		5
Change in fair value of contingent earn-out consideration		1,550			(2,520	)
Relief Funds*		(467	)		-
Other income		(390	)		(859	)
Allocation to non-controlling interests		(6,744	)		(4,185	)
		77,717			73,661

Operating Results (a non-GAAP measure)
Net income attributable to USPH shareholders	$	28,239		$	32,158
Adjustments:
Impairment of goodwill and other intangible assets		17,495			9,112
Change in fair value of contingent earn-out consideration		1,550			(2,520	)
Change in revaluation of put-right liability		(2,582	)		5
Relief Funds*		(467	)		-
Allocation to non-controlling interest		(5,215	)		(2,734	)
Tax effect at statutory rate (federal and state)		(2,755	)		(987	)
	$	36,265		$	35,034

Operating Results per share (a non-GAAP measure)	$	2.56		$	2.70

*In March 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the federal government approved the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”). The CARES Act provided waivers, reimbursement, grants and other funds to assist health care providers during the COVID-19 pandemic, including $100.0 billion in appropriations for the Public Health and Social Services Emergency Fund, to be used for preventing, preparing, and responding to the coronavirus, and for reimbursing eligible health care providers for lost revenues and health care related expenses that are attributable to COVID-19. The Company recorded income under the CARES Act ("Relief Funds").

Adjusted EBITDA increased $4.1 million to $77.7 million for Full Year 2023 from $73.7 million in Full Year 2022 while Operating Results increased $1.2 million to $36.3 million, or $2.56 per share, in Full Year 2023 from $35.0 million, or $2.70 per share, in the Full Year 2022. The increase in both Adjusted EBITDA and Operating Results was primarily associated with clinic additions since the comparable prior year period and increased volume at mature clinics.

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Physical Therapy Operations

	For the Year Ended December 31,						Variance
	2023			2022			$			%
	(In thousands, except percentages)
Revenue related to:
Mature Clinics (1)	$	452,459		$	421,806		$	30,653		7.3	%
Clinic additions (2)		60,495			39,990			20,505		*		(6)
Clinics sold or closed (3)		1,602			2,794			(1,192	)	*		(6)
Net Patient Revenue		514,556			464,590			49,966		10.8	%
Other (4)		11,992			11,502			490		4.3	%
Total		526,548			476,092			50,456		10.6	%
Operating costs (4)		421,484			380,035			41,449		10.9	%
Gross profit	$	105,064		$	96,057		$	9,007		9.4	%

Financial and operating metrics (not in thousands):
Net rate per patient visit (1)	$	102.80		$	103.63		$	(0.83	)	(0.8	)%
Patient visits (1)		5,005,426			4,483,282			522,144.0		11.6	%
Average daily visits per clinic (1)		30.0			28.7			1.3		4.5	%
Gross margin		20.0	%		20.2	%
Salaries and related costs per visit, clinics (5)	$	59.19		$	59.52		$	(0.33	)	(0.6	)%
Operating costs per visit, clinics (5)	$	82.79		$	83.34		$	(0.55	)	(0.7	)%
Working days		254			255			(1	)	(0.4	)%
Number of clinics at the end of the period		671			640			31		4.8	%

(1)	See defined terms above for definitions.

(2)	Clinic additions during the years ended 2023 and 2022.

(3)	Revenue from closed clinics includes revenues from the 15 and 16 clinics closed during the full year December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.

(4)	Includes revenues and costs from management contracts.

(5)	Excludes management contract costs.

(6)	Not meaningful.

Revenues

Revenues increased $50.5 million, or 10.6%, to $526.5 million in Full Year 2023 compared to $476.1 million in Full Year 2022. This increase was primarily due to a record-high average daily visits per clinic for a full year in the Company’s history of 30.0 visits, and an increase in volume from the 31 net new clinics added since the comparable prior year period, partially offset by a decrease in net rate per patient visit to $102.80 for Full Year 2023 compared to $103.63 for Full Year 2022. Total patient visits were 5,005,426 for the 2023 Year and 4,483,282 for the 2022 Year, an increase of 11.6%, with visits at mature clinics up 3.1%. The decrease in net rate in the Full Year 2023 from the Full Year 2022 was primarily due to the combined Medicare rate reductions in 2022 and 2023. All other payor categories, including commercial and workers’ compensation, increased as compared to the prior year.

Other revenue was $12.0 million for the Full Year 2023 Year and $11.5 million for the Full Year 2022, of which management contracts was $8.6 million for the Full Year 2023 as compared to $8.1 million for the Full Year 2022.

Operating costs

Operating costs increased by $41.4 million or 10.9% to $421.5 million in the Full Year 2023 from $380.0 million in the Full Year 2022. The increase was primarily due to the higher volume from the new clinics added since the comparable year period as well as increased patient visits in Mature Clinics. Operating costs for Mature Clinics increased $10.1 million year over year to $363.2 million for the Full Year 2023 from $353.2 million for the Full Year 2022 due to increased visits in the comparable periods. On a per visit basis (excluding management contracts), operating costs decreased to $82.79 for the Full Year 2023 compared to $83.34 for the Full Year 2022.

Salaries and related costs related to clinics increased to $296.3 million in the Full Year 2023 from $266.8 million in the 2022 Year, an increase of $29.5 million, or 11.1%. Salaries and related costs per visit (excluding management contracts), related to clinics decreased to $59.19 for the Full Year 2023 from 59.52 for the Full Year 2022 mostly due to the 31 new clinics added year over year as well as increased visits from Mature Clinics.

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Rent, supplies, contract labor and other costs related to clinics increased to $97.2 million in the Full Year 2023 from $87.6 million in the 2022 Year, an increase of $9.6 million, or 11.1% mostly due to the 31 new clinics added year over year as well as increased visits from Mature Clinics. Rent, supplies, contract labor and other costs, clinics decreased slightly on a per visit basis to $19.42 per visit for the Full Year 2023 compared to $19.53 for the Full Year 2022. Operating costs related to management contracts increased 10.7% from $6.4 million for the Full Year 2022 to $7.1 million in the Full Year 2023.

The provision for credit losses was $6.2 million for the Full Year 2023 and $5.5 million for the Full Year 2022. As a percentage of net revenues, the provision for credit losses were 1.0% for both 2023 and 2022. Our provision for credit losses as a percentage of total patient accounts receivable was 5.0% on December 31, 2023, and 5.2% on December 31, 2022.

Gross Profit

Gross profit from physical therapy operations increased $9.0 million, or 9.4%, to $105.1 million for Full Year 2023 from $96.1 million for Full Year 2022 while the gross profit margin from physical therapy operations decreased slightly to 20.0% for Full Year 2023 from 20.2% and Full Year 2022.

Industrial Injury Prevention Services

	For the Year Ended December 31,
	202			2022
	(In thousands, except percentages)
Net revene	$	78,254		$	77,052
Operating costs		61,809			61,085
Gross profit	$	16,445		$	15,967

Gross margin		21.0	%		20.7	%

IIP business revenue increased $1.2 million to $78.3 million for the Full Year 2023 as compared to $77.1 million for the Full Year 2022. Operating costs related to the IIP business increased 1.2% in the Full Year 2023 to $61.8 million from $61.1 million for the Full Year 2022. Gross profit increased $0.5 million, or 3.0%, to $16.4 million for Full Year 2023 from $16.0 million for the Full Year 2022 while gross profit margin percentage from IIP operations increased slightly to 21.0% for Full Year 2023 from 20.7% for the Full Year 2022.

Corporate Office Costs

Corporate office costs were $52.0 million, or 8.6% of net revenue, for the Full Year 2023 compared to $46.1 million, or 8.3% of net revenue, for the Full Year 2022. The increase in corporate office costs was primarily due to higher salaries and related costs to support the larger number of clinics.

Impairment of Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets

A non-cash impairment charge of $17.5 million was recognized during the Full Year 2023 related to a reporting unit in our IIP segment. This compares to a $9.1 million non-cash impairment charge to goodwill in the comparable prior year period related to the same reporting unit.

Operating Income

Operating income was $52.1 million for the Full Year 2023 compared to $56.8 million for the Full Year 2022. Excluding the non-cash impairment charge of $17.5 million in the Full Year 2023 and $9.1 million in the Full Year 2022, operating income was $69.6 million for the twelve months ended 2023 compared to $65.9 million for the twelve months ended 2022.

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Other (Expenses) Income

Interest Expense, Debt and Other

Interest expense, net of $3.3 million savings from an interest rate swap arrangement discussed below in the “Liquidity and Capital Resources - Interest Rate Swap”, increased $3.5 million to $9.3 million for the Full Year 2023 compared to $5.8 million in the Full Year 2022 due to increased borrowings. The interest rate on the Company’s term loan, was 4.9% for the Full Year 2023, with an all-in effective interest rate, including all associated costs, of 5.3%.

Interest income from investment

Interest income from investment amounted to $3.8 million for the Full Year 2023. This interest income is a result of investing excess cash associated with proceeds from our secondary offering completed in May 2023.

Change in fair value of contingent earn-out consideration

We revalued contingent earn-out consideration related to certain acquisitions resulting in an expense of $1.6 million for the Full Year 2023 compared to a gain of $2.5 million for the Full Year 2022.

Change in Revaluation of Put-Right Liability

For the Full Year 2023, we recorded a gain of $2.6 million on the valuation of the put-right liability compared to a loss of less than $0.1 million for the Full Year 2022. The put-right relates to the potential future purchase of a company that provides physical therapy and rehabilitation services to hospitals and other ancillary providers in a distinct market area.

Equity in earnings of unconsolidated affiliate

For the Full Year 2023, we recognized income of $1.0 million compared to $1.2 million for the Full Year 2022 from a joint venture which provides physical therapy services for patients at hospitals. Since we are deemed to not have a controlling interest in the joint venture, our investment is accounted for using the equity method of accounting.

Provision for Income Taxes

The provision for income tax was $12.2 million for each of the years ended 2023 and 2022. The provision for income tax as a percentage of income before taxes less net income attributable to non-controlling interest (effective tax rate) was 30.1% for 2023 and 27.4% for 2022 as calculated below. The increase in the effective tax rate was primarily due to return-to-provision adjustments mostly related to true up of differences between tax and book basis of certain intangibles.

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	For the Year Ended
	December 31, 2023			December 31, 2022
	(In thousands, except percentages)
Income before taxes	$	49,376		$	55,571

Less: Net income attributable to non-controlling interest:
Redeemable non-controlling interest - temporary equity		(4,426	)		(6,902	)
Non-controlling interest - permanent equity		(4,555	)		(4,347	)
	$	(8,981	)	$	(11,249	)

Income before taxes less net income attributable to non-controlling interest	$	40,395		$	44,322

Provision for income taxes	$	12,156		$	12,164

Effective income tax rate		30.1	%		27.4	%

Net Income Attributable to Non-controlling Interest

Net income attributable to redeemable non-controlling interest (temporary equity) was $4.4 million for the Full Year 2023 and $6.9 million for the Full Year 2022. Net income attributable to non-controlling interest (permanent equity) was $4.6 million for the Full Year 2023 and $4.3 million for the Full Year 2022.

Other Comprehensive Income

We entered into an interest rate swap agreement in May 2022, which became effective on June 30, 2022. The maturity date of the swap agreement is June 30, 2027. It has a $150 million notional value adjusted concurrently with scheduled principal payments made on the term loan. Beginning in July 2022, we pay a fixed one-month Secured Overnight Financing Rate (“SOFR”) of interest of 2.815%. The total interest rate in any period also includes an applicable margin based on the Company’s consolidated leverage ratio. In the Full Year 2023, our interest rate including the applicable margin was 4.9%. Unrealized gains and losses related to the fair value of the interest rate swap are recorded to accumulated other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax. The fair value of the interest rate swap at December 31, 2023, was $3.7 million, and $5.4 million at December 31, 2022, which has been included within Other assets (current and long term) in the accompanying Consolidated Balance Sheet. The impact of the interest rate swap on the accompanying Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income was an unrealized loss of $1.2 million, net of tax, for the 2023 Year.

LIQUIDITY AND CAPITAL RESOURCES

We believe that our business has sufficient cash to allow us to meet our short-term cash requirements. Total cash and cash equivalents were $152.8 million as of December 31, 2023, compared to $31.6 million as of December 31, 2022. Additionally, we had $144.4 million of outstanding borrowings and $175.0 million in available credit under our credit facilities as of December 31, 2023, compared to $179.1 million of outstanding borrowings and $145.9 million in available credit under our credit facilities as of December 31, 2022.

On May 30, 2023, we completed a secondary offering of our common stock resulting in net proceeds of $163.6 million after deducting fees associated with the transaction. A portion of the net proceeds was used to repay the $35.0 million then outstanding under our Credit Agreement while the remainder is expected to be used primarily for acquisitions. Our cash is currently invested in a high-yield savings account which generated interest income of approximately $2.1 million in 2023.

We believe that our cash and cash equivalents and availability under our Credit Facilities are sufficient to fund the working capital needs of our operating subsidiaries through at least February 29, 2025.

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Historically, we have generated sufficient cash from operations to fund our development activities and to cover operational needs. We plan to continue developing new clinics and making additional acquisitions. We have, from time to time, purchased the non-controlling interests of limited partners in our existing partnerships. We may purchase additional non-controlling interests in the future. Generally, any acquisition or purchase of non-controlling interests is expected to be accomplished using our cash, financing, or a combination of the two.

We make reasonable and appropriate efforts to collect accounts receivable, including applicable deductible and co-payment amounts. 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. Medicare and other payor claims relating to new clinics awaiting CMS approval initially may not be submitted for six months or more. When all reasonable internal collection efforts have been exhausted, accounts are written off prior to sending them to outside collection firms. With managed care, commercial health plans and self-pay payor type receivables, the write-off generally occurs after the balance has been outstanding for 120 days or longer. As of December 31, 2023, we have accrued $8.8 million related to credit balances (included in accrued expenses), a portion of which is due to patients and payors. The credit balances are expected to be resolved or paid in the next twelve months.

The average accounts receivable days outstanding was 29 days on December 31, 2023, and 31 days on December 31, 2022. Net patient receivables in the amounts of $6.3 million and $5.5 million were written-off in 2023 and 2022, respectively.

Cash Flow

A summary of our operating, investing, and financing activities is discussed below.

	Year Ended
	December 31, 2023		December 31, 2022		December 31, 2021

Net cash provided by operating activities	$	81,978	$	58,537	$	76,406
Net cash used in investing activities		45,015		81,269		124,136
Net cash provided by financing activities		84,268		25,759		43,379

Operating Activities

Cash provided by operating activities increased $23.4 million to $82.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 as compared to $58.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. This increase was mostly due to higher Adjusted EBITDA as well as increased collections from patient receivables.

Investing Activities

Cash used in investing activities during the year ended December 31, 2023 totaled $45.0 million and consisted of $9.3 million of fixed assets purchases and $37.8 million used in the purchase of majority interests in businesses and non-controlling interest, temporary and permanent equity. These were partially offset by $1.0 million proceeds from sale of non-controlling interest, temporary and permanent and $0.8 million distribution from an unconsolidated affiliate.

Financing Activities

Cash provided by financing activities during the year ended December 31, 2023, totaled $84.3 million and consisted of $163.6 million proceeds from a secondary offering completed in May 2023, partially offset by $31.0 million of net payments under our revolving credit facility, $24.1 million of dividends paid to our shareholders, $16.1 million distribution to non-controlling interest and payments of $8.2 million on our debt.

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Senior Credit Facilities

On December 5, 2013, we entered into an Amended and Restated Credit Agreement with a commitment for a $125.0 million revolving credit facility. This agreement was amended and/or restated in August 2015, January 2016, March 2017, November 2017, and January 2021.On June 17, 2022, we entered into the Third Amended and Restated Credit Agreement (the “Credit Agreement”) among Bank of America, N.A., as administrative agent (“Administrative Agent”) and the lenders from time-to-time party thereto.

The Credit Agreement, which matures on June 17, 2027, provides for loans in an aggregate principal amount of $325 million. Such loans will be available through the following facilities (collectively, the “Senior Credit Facilities”):

Revolving Facility: $175 million, five-year, revolving credit facility (“Revolving Facility”), which includes a $12 million sublimit for the issuance of standby letters of credit and a $15 million sublimit for swingline loans (each, a “Swingline Loan”).

Term Facility: $150 million term loan facility (the “Term Facility”). The Term Facility amortizes in quarterly installments of: (a) 0.625% in each of the first two years, (b) 1.250% in the third and fourth year, and (c) 1.875% in the fifth year of the Credit Agreement. The remaining outstanding principal balance of all term loans is due on the maturity date.

The proceeds of the Revolving Facility have been and shall continue to be used by us for working capital and other general corporate purposes of our Company and its subsidiaries, including to fund future acquisitions and invest in growth opportunities. The proceeds of the Term Facility were used by us to refinance the indebtedness outstanding under the Second Amended and Restated Credit Agreement, to pay fees and expenses incurred in connection with the loan facilities transactions, for working capital and other general corporate purposes.

We are permitted to increase the Revolving Facility and/or add one or more tranches of term loans in an aggregate amount not to exceed the sum of (i) $100 million plus (ii) an unlimited additional amount, provided that (in the case of clause (ii)), after giving effect to such increases, the pro forma Consolidated Leverage Ratio (as defined in the Credit Agreement) would not exceed 2.0:1.0, and the aggregate amount of all incremental increases under the Revolving Facility does not exceed $50,000,000.

The interest rates per annum applicable to the Senior Credit Facilities (other than in respect of Swingline Loans) will be Term SOFR as defined in the agreement plus an applicable margin or, at our option, an alternate base rate plus an applicable margin. The interest rate for the 2023 Year on our Senior Credit Facilities, net of savings from the interest rate swap described below, was 5.1%, with an all-interest rate, including all associated costs, of 5.7%. Interest is payable at the end of the selected interest period but no less frequently than quarterly and on the date of maturity.

We will also pay to the Administrative Agent, for the account of each lender under the Revolving Facility, a commitment fee equal to the actual daily excess of each lender’s commitment over its outstanding credit exposure under the Revolving Facility (“unused fee”). We may prepay and/or repay the revolving loans and the term loans, and/or terminate the revolving loan commitments, in whole or in part, at any time without premium or penalty, subject to certain conditions.

The Credit Agreement contains customary covenants limiting, among other things, the incurrence of additional indebtedness, the creation of liens, mergers, consolidations, liquidations and dissolutions, sales of assets, dividends, and other payments in respect of equity interests, acquisitions, investments, loans and guarantees, subject, in each case, to customary exceptions, thresholds and baskets. The Credit Agreement includes certain financial covenants which include the Consolidated Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio and the Consolidated Leverage Ratio, as defined in the Credit Agreement. The Credit Agreement also contains customary events of default.

Our obligations under the Credit Agreement are guaranteed by our wholly owned material domestic subsidiaries (each, a “Guarantor”), and our obligations and any Guarantors are secured by a perfected first priority security interest in substantially all of our existing and future personal property and each Guarantor, subject to certain exceptions.

As of December 31, 2023, $144.4 million was outstanding on the Term Facility while none was outstanding under the Revolving Facility, resulting in $175.0 million of credit availability. As of December 31, 2023, we were in compliance with all of the covenants contained in the Credit Agreement. The average effective interest rate, net of the savings from interest rate swap discussed below, for borrowings under the Senior Credit Facility, inclusive of all associated costs, was 5.3% for the Full Year 2023.

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Interest Rate Swap

In May 2022, we entered into an interest rate swap agreement, effective on June 30, 2022, with Bank of America, N.A, which became effective on June 30, 2022. It has a $150 million notional value adjusted concurrently with scheduled principal payments made on the term loan and has a maturity date of June 30, 2027. Beginning in July 2022, we receive 1-month SOFR, and pay a fixed rate of interest of 2.815% on 1-month SOFR on a quarterly basis. The total interest rate in any period also includes an applicable margin based on our consolidated leverage ratio. In connection with the swap, no cash was exchanged between us and the counterparty.

We designated our interest rate swap as a cash flow hedge and structured it to be highly effective. Consequently, unrealized gains and losses related to the fair value of the interest rate swap are recorded to accumulate other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax.

As of December 31, 2023, the fair value of the interest rate swap was $3.7 million, a decrease of $1.2 million, net of a $0.4 million, income tax effect, as compared to December 31, 2022. The fair value of the interest rate swap is included in other assets (current and long term) in our consolidated balance sheet while the increase in fair value is presented as unrealized loss in our unaudited consolidated statements of comprehensive income. The interest rate swap arrangement generated $3.3 million in interest savings for the Full Year 2023. The average interest rate for the term facility, net of the savings from the swap in the Full Year 2023 was 4.9%.

Notes Payable and Deferred Payments Related to Acquisitions

We generally enter into various notes payable as a means of financing our acquisitions. Our present outstanding notes payable primarily relate to the acquisitions of a business or acquisitions of majority interests in such businesses. At December 31, 2023, our remaining outstanding balance on these notes aggregated $5.3 million. $1.6 million of the outstanding notes payable are payable in 2023, $2.4 million is payable in 2024, and $1.3 million is payable in 2025. Notes are generally payable in equal annual installments of principal over two years plus any accrued and unpaid interest. Interest accrues at various interest rates ranging from 3.25% to 8.0% per annum.

On September 29, 2023, we acquired a 70% equity interest in a four-clinic physical therapy practice. The owner of the practice retained 30% of the equity interests. The purchase price for the 70% equity interest was approximately $6.0 million, of which $5.4 million was paid in cash, and $0.6 million was in the form of a note payable. The note accrues interest at 5.0% per annum and the principal and interest are payable in two installments. The first payment of principal and interest of $0.3 million was paid January 2024, and the second installment of $0.3 million is due on September 30, 2025.

In a separate transaction, on September 29, 2023, we acquired a 70% equity interest in a single clinic physical therapy practice. The owner of the practice retained 30% of the equity interests. The purchase price for the 70% equity interest was approximately $7.8 million, of which $7.4 million was paid in cash and $0.4 million is a deferred payment due on June 30, 2025.

On July 31, 2023, we acquired a 70% equity interest in a five-clinic practice. The practice’s owners retained a 30% equity interest. The purchase price for the 70% equity interest was approximately $2.1 million, of which $1.8 million was paid in cash and $0.3 million is a deferred payment due on June 30, 2025.

On May 31, 2023, we and a local partner together acquired a 75% interest in a four-clinic physical therapy practice. After the transaction, our ownership interest is 45%, our local partner’s ownership interest is 30%, and the practice’s pre-acquisition owners have a 25% ownership interest. The purchase price for the 75% equity interest was approximately $3.1 million, of which $1.7 million was paid in cash by us, $1.1 million was paid in cash by the local partner, and $0.3 million was in the form of a note payable (of which $0.2 million will be paid by us and $0.1 million will be paid by the local partner). The note will be paid on July 1, 2024. We guaranteed the full payment of $0.3 million on its due date.

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On February 28, 2023, we acquired an 80% interest in a one-clinic physical therapy practice. The practice’s owners retained 20% of the equity interests. The purchase price for the 80% equity interest was approximately $6.2 million, of which $5.8 million was paid in cash and $0.4 million in the form of a note payable. The note accrues interest at 4.5% per annum and the principal and interest are payable on February 28, 2025.

On November 30, 2022, we acquired an 80% interest in a thirteen-clinic physical therapy practice. The practice’s owners retained 20% of the equity interests. The purchase price for the 80% equity interest was approximately $25.0 million, of which $24.2 million was paid in cash and $0.8 million in the form of a note payable. The note accrues interest at 7.0% per annum and the principal and interest are payable on November 30, 2024.

On October 31, 2022, we acquired a 60% interest in a fourteen-clinic physical therapy practice. The practice’s owners retained 40% of the equity interests. The purchase price for the 60% equity interest was approximately $19.5 million, with a potential additional amount to be paid at a later date based on the performance of the business. This contingent consideration had a fair value of $9.8 million on December 31, 2023. The fair value of this contingent consideration will be adjusted quarterly based on certain criteria and market inputs. There is no maximum payout for this contingency.

On September 30, 2022, we acquired an 80% interest in a two-clinic physical therapy practice. The practice’s owners retained 20% of the equity interests. The purchase price for the 80% equity interest was approximately $4.2 million, of which $3.9 million was paid in cash and $0.3 million in the form of a note payable. The note accrues interest at 5.5% per annum and the principal and interest are payable on September 30, 2024.

On August 31, 2022, we acquired a 70% interest in a six-clinic physical therapy practice. The practice’s owners retained 30% of the equity interests. The purchase price for the 70% equity interest was approximately $3.5 million, of which $3.3 million was paid in cash and $0.2 million in the form of a note payable. The note accrues interest at 5.5% per annum and the principal and interest are payable on August 31, 2024.

On March 31, 2022, we acquired a 70% interest in a six-clinic physical therapy practice. The practice’s owners retained 30% of the equity interests. The purchase price for the 70% equity interest was approximately $11.5 million, of which $11.2 million was paid in cash and $0.3 million is in the form of a note payable. The note accrues interest at 3.5% per annum and the principal and interest are payable on March 31, 2024.

Historically, we have generated sufficient cash from operations to fund our development activities and to cover operational needs. We currently have $152.8 million of cash on hand, a significant portion of which is available for deployment into development and other growth initiatives. We plan to continue developing new clinics and making additional acquisitions. We have from time to time purchased the non-controlling interests of limited partners in our Clinic Partnerships. We may purchase additional non-controlling interests in the future. Generally, any acquisition or purchase of non-controlling interests is expected to be accomplished using a combination of cash and financing. A large acquisition may require financing.

We make reasonable and appropriate efforts to collect accounts receivable, including applicable deductible and co-payment amounts. 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. Medicare and other payor claims relating to new clinics awaiting CMS approval initially may not be submitted for six months or more. When all reasonable internal collection efforts have been exhausted, accounts are written off prior to sending them to outside collection firms. With managed care, commercial health plans and self-pay payor type receivables, the write-off generally occurs after the account receivable has been outstanding for 120 days or longer.

Redeemable Non-Controlling Interest

Certain of our limited partnership agreements, as amended, provide that, upon the triggering events, we have a call right and the selling entity or individual has a put right for the purchase and sale of the limited partnership interest held by the partner. Once triggered, the put right and the call right do not expire, even upon an individual partner’s death, and contain no mandatory redemption feature. The purchase price of the partner’s limited partnership interest upon the exercise of either the put right or the call right is calculated per the terms of the respective agreements and classified as redeemable non-controlling interest (temporary equity) in our consolidated balance sheets. The fair value of the redeemable non-controlling interest at December 31, 2023 was $174.8 million.

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In the event that a limited non-controlling interest partner’s employment ceases at any time after a specified date that is typically between three and five years from the acquisition date, we have agreed to certain contractual provisions which enable such non-controlling interest partners to exercise their right to trigger our repurchase of that partner’s non-controlling interest at a predetermined multiple of earnings before interest and taxes.

Share Repurchase Program

In March 2009, the Board authorized the repurchase of up to 10% of our common stock (“March 2009 Authorization”). Under the March 2009 Authorization, the Company has purchased a total of 859,499 shares. In November 2023, the Board terminated the March 2009 Authorization such that any such repurchase of our common stock would be considered and determined by the Board at the time of repurchase. We did not purchase any shares of our common stock during the year ended December 31, 2023, or December 31, 2022.

Contractual Obligations

We have future obligations for debt repayments and associated interest payments as well as future minimum rentals under our non-cancellable operating leases. The obligations as of December 31, 2023, are summarized as follows:

	Total		2024		2025		2026		2027		2028		Thereafter
	(In thousands)
Term facility (1)	$	144,375		5,625		7,500		9,375	$	121,875	$	-	$	-
Notes payable (2)		3,775		2,486		1,289		-		-		-		-
Interest expense on Term Facility and notes payable (3)		20,958		6,725		6,508		6,210		1,515		-		-
Operating leases (4)		144,666		46,845		36,447		27,406		18,495		10,025		5,448
	$	313,774	$	61,681	$	51,744	$	42,991	$	141,885	$	10,025	$	5,448

(1) Amounts due under our Term Facility discussed above.

(2) Amounts due related to certain acquisitions discussed above.

(3) Interest on our Senior Credit Facility was estimated using the average outstanding balance for the respective periods and our effective interest rate on our Term Facility at December 31, 2023, of 4.7%. Interest on our other debt was estimated using the stated rate in the debt agreement.

(4) Includes variable non-lease components, including but not limited to common area maintenance.

CRITICAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES

Management’s discussion and analysis of financial condition and results of operations is based upon our consolidated financial statements which have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States. The preparation of these financial statements requires estimates and judgments that affect the reported amounts of our assets, liabilities, net sales and expenses, and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities. Management bases estimates on historical experience and other assumptions it believes to be reasonable given the circumstances and evaluates these estimates on an ongoing basis. Actual results may differ from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions.

We believe that the following critical accounting policies involve a higher degree of judgment and complexity. See Note 2, Significant Accounting Policies, to our audited consolidated financial statements which are included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for a complete discussion of our significant accounting policies. The following reflect the significant estimates and judgments used in the preparation of our consolidated financial statements.

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Revenue Recognition

Revenues are recognized in the period in which services are rendered. Net patient revenue consists of revenues from physical therapy and occupational therapy clinics that provide pre-and post-operative care and treatment for orthopedic related disorders, sports-related injuries, preventative care, rehabilitation of injured workers and neurological-related injuries. Net patient revenue (patient revenues less estimated contractual adjustments – described below) is recognized at the estimated net realizable amounts from third-party payors, patients and others in exchange for services rendered when obligations under the terms of the contract are satisfied. There is an implied contract between us and the patient upon each patient visit. Separate contractual arrangements exist between us and third-party payors (e.g. insurers, managed care programs, government programs, and workers' compensation programs) which establish the amounts the third parties pay on behalf of the patients for covered services rendered. 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 for us but indicate reimbursement rates for patients who are covered by those payors when the services are provided. At that time, we are obligated to provide services for the reimbursement rates stipulated in the payor contracts. The execution of the contract alone does not indicate a performance obligation. For self-paying customers, the performance obligation exists when we provide the services at established rates. The difference between our established rate and the anticipated reimbursement rate is accounted for as an offset to revenue—contractual allowance.

Management contract revenue, which is included in other revenue in the consolidated statements of net income, is derived from contractual arrangements whereby we manage a clinic owned by a third party. We do not have any ownership interest in these clinics. Typically, revenues are determined based on the number of visits conducted at the clinic and recognized at the point in time when services are performed. Costs, typically salaries for our employees, are recorded when incurred.

Revenues from the IIP business, which are also included in other revenues in the consolidated statements of net income, are derived from onsite services we provide to clients’ employees including injury prevention, rehabilitation, ergonomic assessments, and performance optimization. Revenue from the IIP business is recognized when obligations under the terms of the contract are satisfied. Revenues are recognized at an amount equal to the consideration we expect to receive in exchange for providing injury prevention services to our clients. The revenue is determined and recognized based on the number of hours and respective rate for services provided in a given period.

Additionally, other revenue includes services we provide on-site at locations such as schools and industrial worksites for physical or occupational therapy services, athletic trainers and gym membership fees. Contract terms and rates are agreed to in advance between us and the third parties. Services are typically performed over the contract period and revenue is recorded at the point of service. If the services are paid in advance, revenue is recorded as a contract liability over the period of the agreement and recognized at the point in time when the services are performed.

We determine allowances for credit losses based on the specific agings of receivables and payor classifications at each clinic. The provision for credit losses is included in clinic operating costs in the statements of net income. Patient accounts receivable, which are stated at the historical carrying amount net of contractual allowances, write-offs and allowance for credit losses, includes only those amounts we estimate to be collectible. Our provision for credit losses was 1.0% of total net revenue for each years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively. Management believes that this is reasonable because the majority of our payors consist of highly solvent, highly regulated, commercial insurance companies as well as government programs, including Medicare.

Contractual Allowances

Contractual allowances result from the differences between the rates charged for services performed and expected reimbursements by both insurance companies and government sponsored healthcare programs for such services. Medicare regulations and the various third-party payors and managed care contracts are often complex and may include multiple reimbursement mechanisms payable for the services provided in our clinics. We estimate contractual allowances based on our interpretation of the applicable regulations, payor contracts and historical calculations. Each month we estimate our contractual allowance for each clinic based on payor contracts and the historical collection experience of the clinic and apply an appropriate contractual allowance reserve percentage to the gross accounts receivable balances for each payor of the clinic. Based on our historical experience, calculating the contractual allowance reserve percentage at the payor level is sufficient to allow us to provide the necessary detail and accuracy with our collectability estimates. However, the services authorized and provided and related reimbursement are subject to interpretation that could result in payments that differ from our estimates. Payor terms are periodically revised necessitating continual review and assessment of the estimates made by management. Our billing systems may not capture the exact change in our contractual allowance reserve estimate from period to period. Therefore, in order to assess the accuracy of our revenues and hence our contractual allowance reserves, our management regularly compares our cash collections to corresponding net revenues measured both in the aggregate and on a clinic-by-clinic basis. In the aggregate, the historical difference between net revenues and corresponding cash collections in any given fiscal year has generally reflected a difference within approximately 1.0% to 1.5% of net revenues. Additionally, analysis of subsequent period’s contractual write-offs on a payor basis reflects a difference within approximately 1.0% to 1.5% between the actual aggregate contractual reserve percentage as compared to the estimated contractual allowance reserve percentage associated with the same period end balance. As a result, we believe that a reasonable likely change in the contractual allowance reserve estimate would not be more than 1.0% to 1.5% of gross billings in accounts receivable at December 31, 2023. For purposes of demonstrating the sensitivity of this estimate on our Company’s financial condition, a 1.0% to 1.5% increase or decrease in our aggregate contractual allowance reserve percentage would decrease or increase, respectively, net patient revenue by approximately $1.4 million to $1.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2023. Management believes the changes in the estimate of the contractual allowance reserve for the periods ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021 have not been material to the statement of income.

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Goodwill

Goodwill represents the excess of the amount paid and fair value of the non-controlling interests over the fair value of the acquired business assets, which include certain identifiable intangible assets. Historically, goodwill has been derived from acquisitions and, prior to 2009, from the purchase of some or all of a particular local management’s equity interest in an existing clinic. Effective January 1, 2009, if the purchase price of a non-controlling interest by the Company exceeds or is less than the book value at the time of purchase, any excess or shortfall is recognized as an adjustment to additional paid-in capital.

Goodwill and other indefinite-lived intangible assets are not amortized but are instead subject to periodic impairment evaluations. The fair value of goodwill and other identifiable intangible assets with indefinite lives are evaluated for impairment at least annually and upon the occurrence of certain events or conditions and are written down to fair value if considered impaired. These events or conditions include but are not limited to a significant adverse change in the business environment, regulatory environment, or legal factors; a current period operating, or cash flow loss combined with a history of such losses or a projection of continuing losses; or a sale or disposition of a significant portion of a reporting unit. The occurrence of one of these events or conditions could significantly impact an impairment assessment, necessitating an impairment charge. We evaluate indefinite-lived tradenames in conjunction with our annual goodwill impairment test.

We operate our business through two segments consisting of our physical therapy clinics and our IIP business. For purposes of goodwill impairment analysis, each of our segments is further broken down into reporting units. Reporting units within our physical therapy business comprise of regions primarily based on each clinic’s location. In addition to the six regions, in 2023 and 2022, the IIP business consisted of two reporting units.

As part of the impairment analysis, we are first required to assess qualitatively if we can conclude whether goodwill is more likely than not impaired. If goodwill is more likely than not impaired, we are then required to complete a quantitative analysis of whether a reporting unit’s fair value is less than its carrying amount. In evaluating whether it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount, we consider relevant events or circumstances that affect the fair value or carrying amount of a reporting unit. We consider both the income and market approach in determining the fair value of its reporting units when performing a quantitative analysis.

An impairment loss generally would be recognized when the carrying amount of the net assets of a reporting unit, inclusive of goodwill and other identifiable intangible assets, exceeds the estimated fair value of the reporting unit. The evaluation of goodwill in 2021 did not result in any goodwill amounts that were deemed impaired.

We recorded a charge for goodwill impairment of $15.8 million and $9.1 million in the years ended December 31, 2023, and December 31, 2022, respectively. We also recorded a charge of $1.7 million for the impairment of a tradename during the year ended December 31, 2023. The charges for impairment related to one reporting unit in the IIP business. The impairments are a result of a change in the reporting unit’s current and projected operating income as well as various market inputs based on current market conditions.

During the year ended December 31, 2023, we did not recognize any additional impairment as a result of the Company’s annual assessment of goodwill and tradenames for the other seven reporting units. We also noted no impairment to long-lived assets for all reporting units.

We will continue to monitor for any triggering events or other indicators of impairment.

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No impairment was recognized as part of our annual assessment of goodwill for the other seven reporting units.

Redeemable Non-Controlling Interest

The non-controlling interests that are reflected as redeemable non-controlling interest in our consolidated financial statements consist of those owners, including us, that have certain redemption rights, whether currently exercisable or not, and which currently, or in the future, require that we purchase or the owner sell the non-controlling interest held by the owner, if certain conditions are met and the owners request the purchase (“Put Right”). We also have a call right (“Call Right”). The Put Right or Call Right may be triggered by the owner or us, respectively, at such time as both of the following events have occurred: 1) termination of the owner’s employment, regardless of the reason for such termination, and 2) the passage of specified number of years after the closing of the transaction, typically three to five years, as defined in the limited partnership agreement. The Put Rights and Call Rights are not automatic (even upon death) and require either the owner or us to exercise our rights when the conditions triggering the Put or Call Rights have been satisfied. The purchase price is derived at a predetermined formula based on a multiple of trailing twelve months earnings performance as defined in the respective limited partnership agreements.

On the date we acquire a controlling interest in a partnership and the limited partnership agreement for such partnerships contains redemption rights not under our control, the fair value of the non-controlling interest is recorded in the consolidated balance sheet under the caption—Redeemable non-controlling interest. Then, in each reporting period thereafter until it is purchased by us, the redeemable non-controlling interest is adjusted to the greater of its then current redemption value or initial value, based on the predetermined formula defined in the respective limited partnership agreement. As a result, the value of the non-controlling interest is not adjusted below its initial value. We record any adjustment in the redemption value, net of tax, directly to retained earnings and not in the consolidated statements of net income. Although the adjustments are not reflected in the consolidated statements of net income, current accounting rules require that we reflect the adjustments, net of tax, in the earnings per share calculation. The amount of net income attributable to redeemable non-controlling interest owners is included in consolidated net income on the face of the consolidated statement of income. We believe the redemption value (i.e. the carrying amount) and fair value are the same.

Non-Controlling Interest

We recognize non-controlling interests, in which we have no obligation but the right to purchase the non-controlling interests, as equity in the consolidated financial statements separate from the parent entity’s equity. The amount of net income attributable to non-controlling interests is included in consolidated net income on the face of the consolidated statements of net income. Operating losses are allocated to non-controlling interests even when such allocation creates a deficit balance for the non-controlling interest partner. When we purchase a non-controlling interest and the purchase differs from the book value at the time of purchase, any excess or shortfall is recognized as an adjustment to additional paid-in capital.

ITEM 7A.

QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK

We maintain an interest rate swap arrangement which is considered a derivative instrument. Our indebtedness as of December 31, 2023, was the outstanding balance of seller notes from our acquisitions of $3.8 million, and an outstanding balance on our Credit Agreement of $144.4 million, which includes a term note with a balance of $144.4 million. The Revolving Facility does not have a balance as of December 31, 2023, and is subject to fluctuating interest rates. A 1% change in the interest rate would yield an additional $1.5 million of interest expense. See Note 10 to our consolidated financial statements included in Item 8.

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NEVADA		76-0364866
(STATE OR OTHER JURISDICTION OF INCORPORATION OR ORGANIZATION)		(I.R.S. EMPLOYER IDENTIFICATION NO.)

1300 WEST SAM HOUSTON PARKWAY SOUTH, SUITE 300, HOUSTON, TEXAS		77042
(ADDRESS OF PRINCIPAL EXECUTIVE OFFICES)		(ZIP CODE)

Title of Each Class	Trading Symbol	Name of Each Exchange on Which Registered
Common Stock, $.01 par value	USPH	New York Stock Exchange

Large accelerated filer	☑	Accelerated filer	☐
Non-accelerated filer	☐ (Do not check if a smaller reporting company)	Smaller reporting company	☐
		Emerging growth company	☐

DOCUMENT	PART OF FORM 10-K

Portions of Definitive Proxy Statement for the 2024 Annual Meeting of Shareholders	Part III

Reports of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm—Grant Thornton LLP (PCAOB ID Number 248)	48
Audited Financial Statements:
Consolidated Balance Sheets as of December 31, 2023 and 2022	51
Consolidated Statements of Net Income for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021	52
Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021	53
Consolidated Statements of Changes in Equity for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021	54
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021	55
Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements	56

	December 31, 2023			December 31, 2022
ASSETS
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$	152,825		$	31,594
Patient accounts receivable, less provision for credit losses of $2,736 and $2,829, respectively		51,866			51,934
Accounts receivable - other		17,854			16,671
Other current assets		10,830			11,067
Total current assets		233,375			111,266
Fixed assets:
Furniture and equipment		63,982			62,074
Leasehold improvements		46,941			42,877
Fixed assets, gross		110,923			104,951
Less accumulated depreciation and amortization		(84,821	)		(80,203	)
Fixed assets, net		26,102			24,748
Operating lease right-of-use assets		103,431			103,004
Investment in unconsolidated affiliate		12,256			12,131
Goodwill		509,571			494,101
Other identifiable intangible assets, net		109,682			108,755
Other assets		2,821			4,149
Total assets	$	997,238		$	858,154

LIABILITIES, REDEEMABLE NON-CONTROLLING INTEREST, USPH SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY AND NON-CONTROLLING INTEREST
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable - trade	$	3,898		$	3,300
Accounts payable - due to seller of acquired business		-			3,204
Accrued expenses		55,344			37,413
Current portion of operating lease liabilities		35,252			33,709
Current portion of term loan and notes payable		7,691			7,863
Total current liabilities		102,185			85,489
Notes payable, net of current portion		1,289			1,913
Revolving facility		-			31,000
Term loan, net of current portion and deferred financing costs		137,702			142,918
Deferred taxes		24,815			21,303
Operating lease liabilities, net of current portion		76,653			77,934
Other long-term liabilities		2,356			13,029
Total liabilities		345,000			373,586

Redeemable non-controlling interest - temporary equity		174,828			167,515

Commitments and Contingencies

U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. (“USPH”) shareholders’ equity:
Preferred stock, $0.01 par value, 500,000 shares authorized, no shares issued and outstanding		-			-
Common stock, $0.01 par value, 20,000,000 shares authorized, 17,202,291 and 15,216,326 shares issued, respectively		172			152
Additional paid-in capital		281,096			110,317
Accumulated other comprehensive gain		2,782			4,004
Retained earnings		223,772			232,948
Treasury stock at cost, 2,214,737 shares		(31,628	)		(31,628	)
Total USPH shareholders’ equity		476,194			315,793
Non-controlling interest - permanent equity		1,216			1,260
Total USPH shareholders’ equity and non-controlling interest - permanent equity		477,410			317,053
Total liabilities, redeemable non-controlling interest, USPH shareholders’ equity and non-controlling interest - permanent equity	$	997,238		$	858,154