Ahead of the Bell: Amedisys shares tumble

Shares of Amedisys Inc. sank in premarket trading Monday after the home health care provider said its annual revenue from health insurer Humana Inc. will shrink.

Amedisys, based in Baton Rouge, La., said a new agreement with Humana will generate about half of the roughly $65 million to $70 million it has produced. Amedisys will receive payments from the insurer on a per-visit basis under the new deal. Humana, based in Louisville, Ky., was reimbursed on an episodic basis under the previous arrangement.

Amedisys also said the markets it served under the old deal may not all be served under the new agreement, but it did not offer details in a brief statement.

The company, which also provides hospice care, said it will start feeling the impact from the new deal in the fourth quarter. The full impact will be felt in 2013.

Shares of Amedisys fell $1.44, or nearly 11 percent, to $11.89 Monday in pre-market trading. Its shares peaked for the past year at $15.95 in mid-September. Its shares traded as low as $9.12 last November.