The Columbus Organization, a portfolio company of HealthEdge Investment Partners, LLC, has expanded its national footprint to Florida with the acquisition of Support Associates of Tampa Bay.

Columbus is a nationally recognized provider of support coordination and other services for individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (I/DD). Founded by Lynda Debenedet and Rebecca Spadola, Tampa, FL-based Support Associates has provided support coordination services, life skills training, and personal adjustment counseling under the Brain and Spinal Cord Injury Waiver and Adult Cystic Fibrosis Waiver in Hillsborough, Pasco and Pinellas counties for over a decade. Additionally, the company has offered training services to support coordinators throughout Florida. The acquisition of Support Associates expands Columbus’ geographic reach to now seven states and more than 10,000 individuals, families, and guardians.

Jeff Klimaski, President of Columbus shared, “With a mission to reach and support as many families as possible, this acquisition enables us to expand into Florida, a state with a large population of underserved families challenged by intellectual or developmental disabilities. We are confident that Columbus’ long track record of success in care coordination will allow us to seamlessly integrate Support Associates of Tampa Bay, a high quality, experienced, and compassionate organization already providing excellent services in the state. We welcome the organization into our Company’s family as we share a vision for the future and the people that we serve.”

ABOUT THE COLUMBUS ORGANIZATION

The Columbus Organization empowers individuals to realize their meaningful–life goals through nationally recognized care/support coordination, professional clinical staffing, and quality improvement services for the intellectual/developmental disability (I/DD) or behavioral needs community. The Company delivers an unmatched depth of expertise, breadth of resources, diversity of thinking, and dedication to finding the most appropriate, personalized solutions for its customers. The Columbus Organization provides a wide array of services specifically for families, individuals and the organizations that support them. For more information, visit www.columbusorg.com.

ABOUT HEALTHEDGE

HealthEdge Investment Partners, LLC is an operating-oriented private equity firm founded in 2005 that focuses exclusively on the healthcare industry. HealthEdge seeks to achieve superior returns by investing in businesses that benefit from the knowledge, experience, and network of relationships of its partners. HealthEdge’s partners have more than 100 years of combined operating experience in healthcare as CEOs and investors.