According to Marc Egort, "There are quite a few things a CPA gets involved with." Those "things" might even be ones not usually associated with CPA work. For example, a person may not consider that a CPA would be engaged in mergers and acquisitions; but Egort, founder of Marc Egort CPA, P.A., has been handling them for years.

Interestingly, the two can go hand-in-hand and he explained how this evolved into his practice, saying he basically got started by being somebody’s accountant. He said a client may indicate he is thinking of selling his business, and Egort will reply, all right, let’s talk about it; let’s figure out how you’re contemplating the valuation, what you think some of the trigger points are, some of the vulnerabilities. "As their CPA, you are in a unique position to assist them with positioning their business for sale and assisting them on the due diligence side. Like anything else in practice, things evolve because there’s a need for them. Inevitably it just shows up when you’ve been practicing as long as I have."
 
Egort has been in the health care space business for 32 years, with over 30 years in public accounting, starting in a Medicare certified home health agency in 1989. From there he went to work for a boutique CPA firm that specialized in home health reimbursement. He formed his own practice 10 years later. "I became known as a Medicare reimbursement consultant, but the funny thing was, when my clients learned I had a CPA license, they would say ‘Oh by the way, I need you to help me with my taxes.’ From that it just kind of evolved into an accounting practice, and now we are able to offer more in the way of customized services for our clients."
 
He said when going over financial information with clients, he occasionally asks about their plans for the future, and they may say that in five or 10 years they want to position the company for sale. His first recommendation is: let’s start with your financial statements. "Most of my clients – if they are service businesses – will prepare cash basis financial statements, whereas buyers usually want to see things on an accrual basis. So the first place to start is to make sure they have financial statements that the potential acquirer could use or meet industry standard financial reporting."
 
Because of his background in the home health market, Egort has a strong presence in the health care space and has worked with quite a number of physicians – both groups as well as solo practitioners. He pointed out how health care clients differ from others when it comes to mergers and acquisitions. "Working with health care is different from companies that rely on sales of inventory. All have varying elements that change the way you would view the valuation approach." He cited a jewelry company as an example, saying it might have $5 million in inventory on their books. "What is that company worth? Using an over-simplistic approach, one could make an argument that because the inventory is the largest asset of the company, its value would dictate the sale; if I’m taking over that company, I’m basically buying that inventory."
 
On the other hand, physician practices are more likely based on either the number of patients or revenues. Egort said in some cases, the buyer may have a strategic reason for wanting it, or might just want to make an investment in it. "Perhaps they want to get the other group off the market because they’re a competitor, or maybe they’re taking over a dermatology practice that utilizers lasers, and their investment in that company gives them access to technologies they don’t currently have. There are also strategic alliances, simply because a physician wants to retire." He added that there are often intangibles that have to be considered as well, such as the goodwill of the practice, how long the physicians have been involved, or how long they will continue to be involved post-sale.
 
All of these must be taken into consideration, but Egort said, "The discussion with my clients before they put their company up for sale is often, what’s the number that makes you want to walk away from everything. That’s an important discussion. It’s got to feel good for them to walk away from their life’s work and feel as if they’ve gotten value out of that."
 
Egort didn’t anticipate 25 years ago having his practice expand into areas such as mergers and acquisitions, but as he said, things sometimes evolve because there’s a need for them. However, the most important aspect of his business is service. "Service and communication have been the hallmark of our practice for over 30 years."


Cleveland Clinic Martin Health welcomes board-certified otolaryngologist Tony Reisman, M.D. Dr. Reisman will also serve as the Department Chair for Ear, Nose and Throat Surgery at Martin Health.

Dr. Reisman completed an otolaryngology residency program at University Hospitals of Cleveland. Prior to residency, he completed his surgical internship at Washington University in St. Louis and his medical training at The Chicago Medical School. Dr. Reisman completed his premedical undergraduate degree at Washington University in St. Louis.
 
Prior to joining Martin Health, Dr. Reisman was a staff physician at Cleveland Clinic Head and Neck Institute in Ohio. He was also previously a staff physician at Case Western University Hospitals in Cleveland. In each of these roles, Dr. Reisman has educated many residents in training.


Stories of the devastating impact of COVID-19 on personal and professional lives throughout the world have dominated the headlines this past year. This is an inspiring best practice scenario of a forward-thinking survival strategy.

With a 30-year history of collaboration with ADPEN Laboratories, a global leader of Agrochemical, Nutraceutical, Pharmaceutical and Food Safety testing, Americanna Laboratories is a family-operated division formed in 2018 to advance the science of cannabis relief for cancer patients. Americanna strives to bring good science to the cannabis testing industry and ensure the safety of products for consumers.
 
Based on their analytical testing experience in the above industries and cannabis testing from flowers to oils and tinctures to edibles, co-founders Steven Perez and David Perez along with the Americanna executive team decided to navigate the pandemic with a two-pronged approach.
 
First, supporting their nationwide client base through the peaks and valleys of consumer demand in a pandemic induced economy-in-flux; and second, simultaneously examining their own business plan to determine a future-oriented growth strategy. Their strategy included steps to expand their scope of services and add targeted expertise to their management team to continue their mission of applying scientific testing expertise to a broader client base.
 
At one end of the spectrum were clients already well-established in the nutritional supplements market who needed to quickly amp up manufacturing and testing of products blended with hemp-derived ingredients. These clients saw increased demand from consumers taking control of their health during difficult times by exploring alternative and naturally-sourced products, many of which contained hemp-derived ingredients such as CBD and CBG.
 
Alternatively, some clients needed to lean on their partnership with Americanna through decreased demand trends and dire financial scenarios but still required their signature, rigorous, high quality testing at lower cost until a return to normalcy.
 
“As partners with our clients, we felt obligated to accommodate our client needs through periods of stress and distress. Consumers were looking for these products and quality cannot be sacrificed,” Steven Perez noted.
 
Planning through a Pandemic
During the past year, Americanna Labs has enhanced their team with managerial and sales expertise with the appointment of Wyman Dickey, as CEO and Alex Pecci as Vice President, Sales and Marketing. Both individuals excelled in successfully managing growth in other industries and brought a new eye to the market.
 
“We had a pedigree foundation of knowledgeable scientists and state-of-the-art technology but expanding our business acumen and extending our sales reach with these strategic team members allows us to better serve and advise our clients – not simply provide a premier analytical service,” according to Steven Perez.
 
A major area of growth for the Americanna team has been in the testing of nutritional supplements on the Amazon sales platform. This was where 30 years of nutritional testing experience really made a difference, according to Perez. As the health industry continues to curtail opioid prescription medications, consumer demand for alternative pain relief and sleep assistance products exploded with a rush to combine CBD with traditional supplements. This required testing according to FDA regulations to an ISO 17025 standard, which, for the manufacturer, meant sending products to a variety of lab facilities to complete the required testing for different components.
 
According to Dickey, Americanna Labs expanded their scope of ISO accreditation to include more products and offer a one-stop testing solution, which complies with FDA regulations. Tests such as identification, potency, dosage uniformity, homogeneity dissolution and shelf-life along with contaminant testing for pesticides, microbial agents, residual solvents and heavy metals can all be done in-house at Americanna Labs. Amazon distributed products require this additional level of quality standard testing, which many traditional cannabis labs cannot provide.
 
“As an FDA, DEA, and EPA audited facility, we understand the most stringent quality standard requirements to which our clients must adhere. We save our clients time, money and effort by managing, coordinating and reporting multiple test results under one roof, while providing the highest level of assurance of safety for the end-user,” Dickey said
 
In addition to one-stop testing convenience, Americanna’s experience with FDA regulations provides new manufacturers a trust-worthy partner who can advise clients on the importance of method testing and setting specifications for product ingredients and characteristics.
 
“More potency is not necessarily better,” Perez noted “and with our test results we can help manufacturers understand the impact of dosing specifications and ensure consumer safety both on the label and in the product.”
 
“Obviously, the dreadful consequences of COVID-19 did not bypass our industry; but we seized the opportunity to strategize and stimulate innovative energies and resources to solve issues with confidence for our clients in accordance with our mission,” he summarized.


The North Broward Hospital District Board of Commissioners, which oversees Broward Health, recently welcomed three new commissioners. Recently appointed by Governor Ron DeSantis, John Hage, Chris Pernicano and Levi Williams were confirmed by the board.

Hage has dedicated his career to education. As the founder and CEO of Charter Schools USA, he leads one of the nation’s largest and highest performing education companies. Hage also created and oversees Red Apple Development. In 2013, he was named Floridian of the Year by Florida Trend magazine and he participated in the COVID-19/ReOpen Florida Task Force. Hage served in the U.S. Special Forces/Green Berets and holds degrees from the University of Colorado and Georgetown University.
 
Pernicano has more than 20 years in the FinTech space, with experience in all aspects of small, medium and large company operation, including executive management, technology, operations, human resources and sales. He is the Vice President of Engineering and IT with Netsmart. Previously, he served as Chief Operating Officer of Tellus, LLC. Pernicano has bachelor and master’s degrees in engineering from the University of Florida, where he also achieved an MBA.
 
Williams is President/Shareholder of the Law Offices of Levi Williams, P.A. He is a previous partner at Fertig and Gramling and is also a member of the Florida Bar. Williams has been heavily involved in the community for the past two decades, sitting on boards such as the Independent Commission on Education, Gold Coast Jazz Society and the Urban League of Broward County. He has a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of Illinois and a Juris Doctor from the University of Florida.
 


Method Testing Labs recently became the sixth company licensed to test cannabis in Florida. Based in Tampa, Method provides cannabis testing throughout Florida and Hemp testing throughout the country.

“Having led businesses as a cannabis operator, we understand the business and our customers’ needs and built our laboratory from the ground up based on that experience. We’ve set up multiple testing laboratories, bought third-party lab services, experienced the challenges in the supply chain, and we know the need for transparency of results and patient safety,” said Keith Browning, Method Testing Labs’ CEO.
 
The lab offers a full spectrum of testing and industry-leading turnaround times, issuing all results within 24-72 hours. It was developed with an entirely digitized sample process, using a customized laboratory management system and patient portal, and is ISO 17025 accredited. Built on lean operations and processes, the lab delivers quicker, clearer and more accurate test results.
 
“It is our goal to bring together the most qualified scientists and leading experts in the industry,” said Rob Radke, Method Testing Labs’ President. “With that background in place we’re not only able to offer superior testing, but we also work hand-in-hand with the manufacturers to troubleshoot issues and provide quick results that are easily accessible. We know the industry and work hard to make our partners’ business a success.”
 
Method Testing Labs’ services include analytical testing for cannabinoids, terpenes, heavy metals, pesticides, mycotoxins, microbials, residual solvents and more. Method Testing Labs’ solutions provide the critical tools needed to cultivate, manufacture and distribute cannabis products, helping to bridge the gap between regulatory compliance and business needs.