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VITAS Healthcare is the largest provider of hospice care in the United States. VITAS is a subsidiary of publicly-traded Chemed Corporation, which also owns plumbing company Roto-Rooter.

VITAS Healthcare operates 50 hospice programs in 16 states and employs approximately 11,600 professionals, according to the company's website.

Company Overview
VITAS offers hospice and palliative care services to patients across the U.S., provided by its doctors, registered nurses, home health aides, social workers, clergy, and volunteers. The organization also supplies home medical equipment and medications to patients while offering spiritual and emotional counseling to patients and their families.

To support community partners and hospice patients in need, the organization operates VITAS Community Connection, a 501(c)3 charitable organization. All donations to VITAS Community Connection go to local patient needs.

History
VITAS began in 1978 as a nonprofit hospice in South Florida, founded in part by Hugh Westbrook, a Methodist Minister and Esther Colliflower, a nurse, who shared the belief that America was doing a poor job of attending to the dying. The organization then became known as Hospice Care, Incorporated, and eventually, VITAS Healthcare.

In 2004, VITAS was acquired by Cincinnati-based Chemed for $400 million.

Corporate Headquarters
VITAS Healthcare is headquartered in Miami, Florida. In 2013, the organization leased 23,500 square feet at the Miami Center, which is located at 201 South Biscayne Boulevard.

Previously, VITAS was an anchor tenant at Bayfront Plaza at 100 South Biscayne Boulevard, which bears the VITAS name. Bayfront Plaza, completed in the late 1950s, is expected to be demolished and replaced by One Bayfront Plaza in 2018, a large complex which would be among the tallest buildings in Miami.