Profits Up 57% at Expanding ReadiCare

IRVINE —  Benefiting from business growth and cost reductions, ReadiCare Inc., the West Coast’s largest operator of medical facilities for injured workers , said Thursday it realized net income of $2.7 million in its 1991 fiscal year, up 57% from $1.7 million for the previous year.

The company, based in Irvine, posted revenue of $56.5 million for the 12 months ended Feb. 28, an increase of 21% over $46.6 million for fiscal 1990.

For the fourth quarter, ReadiCare earned $431,000, up 74% from $248,000 for the same period a year before, and revenue of $13.3 million, up 16% from $11.5 million.

Dennis G. Danko, ReadiCare’s president and chief executive, said the company is making headway in the workers’ compensation field by striving to get employees back on the job as quickly as possible, which he said is attractive to cost-conscious employers and insurance companies. He said the company has improved its earnings despite an inability to raise prices because state regulators have frozen rates that may be charged for treating patients in workers’ compensation cases.

As part of its efforts to expand business, ReadiCare over the past year has added new programs, especially in the fields of orthopedic and rehabilitation medicine, Danko said.

Danko also said ReadiCare has opened two new medical centers in Stockton and the Seattle area since September and acquired two existing centers in South San Francisco and Escondido. He said the company plans to open 10 additional units to strengthen its presence in several service areas over the next 24 months.

ReadiCare owns or operates medical centers at 46 sites in California, Washington and Nevada. The company once operated several facilities in Orange County but ended those operations because of the high cost of doing business and strong competition in this market, Danko said.

John Girton, a health care analyst with Van Kasper & Co., an investment banking firm in San Francisco, said ReadiCare has achieved economies of scale from its expansion, including the ability to order supplies at bulk discount prices. He added that the company is gaining name recognition within business communities by its strategy of clustering its centers in geographic areas.