Seoul Medical Group (SMG) and Korean American Medical Group (KAMG), the two leading Asian-American-focused medical groups and physician networks in the United States, have merged. Ascend Capital Partners, a healthcare focused private equity firm dedicated to improving the access, affordability and quality of healthcare for vulnerable and underserved populations, is sponsoring the transaction. Ascend previously invested in SMG in 2023.
The partnership between SMG, KAMG and Ascend forms one of the leading physician-led networks in the United States, dedicated to providing both high-quality clinical and non-clinical healthcare services.
Combined, SMG and KAMG serve nearly 100,000 patients and more than 5,000 primary care and specialist physicians across California, Georgia, Hawaii, New Jersey, New York, Virginia and Washington. The merger expands SMG’s position as the largest Asian-American-focused medical group and physician network, building on SMG’s and KAMG’s long-standing histories of serving Asian-American physicians, patients and communities.
Through the partnership, Ascend will provide the combined company with additional capital to invest in infrastructure, technology and operational processes.
“The US healthcare system is complex, fragmented and can be difficult to navigate, particularly for those who need to overcome language and cultural barriers,” said In Seon Hwang, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Ascend Partners.
SMG also owns Advanced Medical Management (AMM), a management services organization (MSO) that provides comprehensive administrative services to physicians, including claims processing, care management, compliance, quality training, utilisation management and credentialing.
