Welltower and Jefferson Announce Framework for Real Estate Investments, Care for Aging Populations

PHILADELPHIA and TOLEDO, Ohio, Jan. 13, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Toledo-based real estate investment trust Welltower (NYSE: WELL) and Philadelphia-based Thomas Jefferson University and Jefferson Health (Jefferson) announced today their intention to create a long-term strategic partnership that will transform Jefferson's real estate portfolio and open new opportunities to address social determinants of health for aging populations across their shared geographic footprint.

Under the terms of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed by both parties, Welltower and Jefferson would create a joint venture whereby Welltower would acquire a stake in certain real estate assets of Jefferson, enabling Jefferson to reduce some of its fixed asset investments and redeploy the capital to other clinical and academic strategic areas.

In addition to the joint venture, Welltower would help Jefferson accelerate its ambulatory care growth strategy through capital support and its best-in-class predictive analytics to guide future real estate investments based on where Jefferson clinical services would best serve the public. 

"This partnership with Welltower will be a crucial step forward in achieving our 'healthcare with no address' innovation strategy," said Stephen K. Klasko, MD, MBA, President of Thomas Jefferson University and CEO of Jefferson Health. "By partnering with the best companies across varied sectors, we can bring world-class healthcare from the hospital to the home. We're thrilled that the great team at Welltower is looking to Jefferson to advance our shared ambitious aim of creating healthier communities."

Additionally, Jefferson's clinicians would provide care at the Welltower senior housing, assisted living and memory care communities throughout the region as well as future ones the organizations could build together. This would mean Jefferson clinicians could manage residents' full continuum of care ? from pre-acute to acute and now post-acute.

This would mark a first-of-its-kind partnership between Welltower and a major academic health system.

"This landmark joint venture partners Welltower, the leading health and wellness delivery platform, with one of the largest and most innovative health systems in the United States," said Thomas J. DeRosa, Chairman and CEO of Welltower. "Welltower and Jefferson are well aligned in our thinking that much of the current built environment for healthcare delivery cannot meet the promise of technological innovation and value-based care. Jefferson, a leader in delivering care outside the hospital walls, together with Welltower, will work to ensure that Jefferson's healthcare delivery infrastructure will deliver care more efficiently, cost effectively and with improved outcomes."

Welltower and Jefferson foresee residents at their facilities being tracked by Jefferson clinicians through wearable devices, alert messaging integrated into electronic medical records, mobile-enabled communications and wellness tracking to reduce some of the social determinants that negatively impact health outcomes.

"These living facilities could truly provide healthcare services with the future in mind," Klasko added. "An environment where you wake up and your home monitor device has collated the data from your wearable device and medical history and cross referenced that data with the day's pollen count to make recommendations on how you should manage your day. This is what we mean when we talk about Jefferson using creative strategic partnerships and innovation to change healthcare."

Jefferson and Welltower anticipate that a definitive agreement will be executed in the coming 90 days.

Forward Looking Statement

This press release may contain "forward-looking" statements as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.  When Welltower uses words such as "may," "will," "intend," "should," "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "project," "estimate" or similar expressions that do not relate solely to historical matters, it is making forward-looking statements.  Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties that may cause Welltower's actual results to differ materially from Welltower's expectations discussed in the forward-looking statements.  This may be a result of various factors, including, but not limited to, those factors discussed in Welltower's reports filed from time to time with the SEC. Welltower undertakes no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether because of new information, future events or otherwise, or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those projected in any forward-looking statements.

About Welltower
Welltower Inc. (NYSE: WELL), an S&P 500 company headquartered in Toledo, Ohio, is driving the transformation of health care infrastructure. Welltower invests with leading seniors housing operators, post-acute providers and health systems to fund the real estate infrastructure needed to scale innovative care delivery models and improve people's wellness and overall health care experience. Welltowertm, a real estate investment trust (REIT), owns interests in properties concentrated in major, high growth markets in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, consisting of seniors housing, post-acute communities and outpatient medical properties. For more information, visit www.welltower.com.

About Jefferson Health 
Jefferson Health, home of Sidney Kimmel Medical College, is reimagining health care in the greater Philadelphia region and southern New Jersey. Jefferson's dedicated team of doctors, nurses, health professionals and staff provides a range of primary to highly-specialized care through 14 hospitals (seven are Magnet®-designated by the ANCC for nursing excellence), more than 40 outpatient and urgent care locations, the NCI-designated Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, Magee Rehabilitation and the JeffConnect® telemedicine program. For 2019-2020, Thomas Jefferson University Hospitals is ranked among the nation's best hospitals in eight specialities by U.S. News & World Report. Jefferson Health's mission is to improve the lives of patients in the communities it is privileged to serve through safe, effective, equitable, compassionate care.

SOURCE Welltower Inc.