Three southeastern substance use disorder (SUD) treatment providers have merged to form Tulip Hill Healthcare.
The merger consolidates Tennessee-based Tulip Hill Recovery with two Kentucky-based SUD treatment centers, Louisville Addiction Center and Lexington Addiction Center. The move positions Tulip Hill for future growth, with Tulip Hill executives planning to open three new facilities in the next two years.
“We believe that for [partial hospitalization (PHP) and intensive outpatient programs (IOP)], we set the standard,” Jacob Biddulph, Tulip Hill’s vice president, told Addiction Treatment Business. “We’re pretty confident after merging that we are going to be able to centralize everything where we can focus on growth.”
Ben Jones, former CEO of Tulip Hill Recovery, has been appointed CEO of the newly formed Tulip Hill Healthcare. Together, he and Biddulph privately own Tulip Hill Healthcare.
Jones founded Tulip Hill Recovery in 2016. In 2022, Biddulph joined as chief operating officer with a “small percentage” of company ownership. Biddulph opened the two Kentucky providers in late 2022, and in May 2024, the three centers were merged to form Tulip Hill Healthcare.
Tulip Hill Healthcare’s services include outpatient, PHP and IOP. Between the three locations, Tulip Hill sees approximately 90 patients each month. Patients primarily pay for services using commercial insurance, though Tulip Hill does accept cash pay.
Following the merger, the provider has plans to grow its service lines and patient base while improving its quality of care. Two of the three new facilities Tulip Hill plans to open in the next two years are already in the works.
The company is scouting Massachusetts and Kentucky as the sites for the two new facilities, focusing on underserved areas.
“That’s why I opened in Kentucky when I did because we’re the only PHP/IOP that offers housing [and] only accepts commercially insured clients,” Biddulph said.
The Massachusetts location would likely be focused more on mental health services because the area is relatively saturated with SUD providers, while a high need remains for mental health, Biddulph said.
Tulip Hill’s staff, of which approximately 85% are in recovery themselves, are the provider’s biggest strength, according to Biddulph. However, staffing is also Tulip Hill’s biggest challenge to growth.
“You look at an organization like Landmark,” Biddulph said. “They knew how to find the properties. They knew how to fill the beds. But what they were missing were the key employees on the ground to provide the care that was really necessary. Our biggest thing is going to be finding the right staff. … That makes or breaks you.”
Nashville, Tennessee-based Landmark Recovery has been under scrutiny for severe understaffing and the deaths of three patients at one of its facilities.
