Buying a medical supply business in Tampa Bay

• Many accounts and referral sources, with no single clinic, health system or physician driving most sales.
• Sales reps whose accounts would stay with the company if they left.
• Recurring revenue from rentals, resupply programs and standing orders, rather than one-time sales.
• A billing team with few denied claims and documentation that holds up in audits.
• Supplier relationships and pricing a new owner can keep, including any exclusive territory for a product line.
• A rental fleet tracked by serial number, with cleaning and maintenance logged on schedule.
• Current accreditation and licenses with no lapses, and a clean record with Medicare and the Medicaid plans it bills.
• Delivery routes, inventory counts and reorder points kept in a system, not in the owner's head.

• Medicare pricing. Medicare's competitive bidding program is coming back as a single nationwide round, with bids due in early 2027 and contracts starting January 1, 2028 (CMS's target dates). It covers continuous glucose monitors, insulin pumps, ostomy and urological supplies and some off-the-shelf braces, and only winning bidders can bill Medicare for those items. If they matter to this business, ask whether the seller is bidding.
• Audits. Audits by Medicare and the plans, denied claims and repayment demands, and whether patient files have valid orders and proof of delivery. Florida Medicaid can hold a buyer liable for overpayments identified by closing (section 409.907(6)).
• Referral arrangements. Payments, free staff or perks for doctors or other referral sources can break federal anti-kickback law. Have a health care attorney read every such contract.
• Customer contracts. For distributors, how much of sales rests on a few customers, and the terms of any contracts with group purchasing organizations or health systems.
• Inventory and fleet. Expired or slow-moving stock, goods held on consignment, and the age and condition of rental equipment.
• Supplier agreements that end, or need the manufacturer's consent, when ownership changes.

• Which products bring in the most revenue and profit, and how much comes from rentals and resupply compared with one-time sales?
• Who are your largest payers or customers, and are any contracts up for renewal soon?
• Which doctors, hospitals or clinics send you most of your patients or orders?
• How often are claims denied, and have you had any audits or repayment requests?
• Which accreditation and licenses do you hold, and when are the next renewals and surveys?
• Do any manufacturer or distribution agreements need consent to move to a new owner?
• Who runs billing, delivery and the warehouse day to day, and would they stay?

Tampa Bay, as we draw it, runs from Citrus County south through Hernando, Pasco, Pinellas and Hillsborough, and east into Polk: Tampa, St. Petersburg, Clearwater, Brandon, Wesley Chapel, Brooksville, Inverness, Lakeland and Winter Haven. Tampa is the business center, with Port Tampa Bay, Tampa International Airport, the University of South Florida and MacDill Air Force Base, home to the headquarters of U.S. Central Command and U.S. Special Operations Command. Financial services, insurance and health care employ many people, and the Gulf beaches of Pinellas bring tourists and seasonal residents.

Polk County sits on Interstate 4 between Tampa and Orlando and has become a center for warehouses and distribution, alongside its older citrus and phosphate industries. To the north, Pasco, Hernando and Citrus are more suburban and rural, with many retirees. Home service companies, the building trades, medical practices and auto businesses all have a deep customer base across the region.

Hurricane Helene's storm surge in September 2024 and Hurricane Milton two weeks later both hit the region hard. Flood zones and insurance costs now matter in any deal near the water. Ask how the business came through those storms, what it claimed, and whether its building sits in a flood zone.

The labor market is deep by Florida standards, though skilled tradespeople can still be hard to find. New homes have pushed north and east into Pasco and eastern Hillsborough, and along Interstate 4 in Polk, bringing demand for services with them. Coastal Pinellas is more seasonal than inland Tampa or Lakeland. The bay itself shapes a service company's territory: crossing a bridge at rush hour can turn a short distance into a long drive, so look at where the customers actually are.