Medical clinics regroup after chain fails

By Deborah Hill Cone

Friday 28th June 2002

The fragmented medical clinic market regrouped yesterday after the collapsed Medi-Plus chain changed hands to a new buyer with mystery backers.

In a deal that may lead to the formation of the biggest private GP clinic chain in the country, Tauranga accountant Tom Wilson has bought Accident & Medical Centres Investment (Amcil), also known as Medi-Plus, from Te Puke-based receivers Rodewald Hart & Associates.

Amcil, whose 70 shareholders include Export Institute president Murray Davies, Ascot Hospital and Salus Health entrepreneur David Halstead and controversial Reeves Moses founder Roger Moses, was placed in receivership on May 13 by debentureholder I-Cap Nominees.

After a capital raising last year Amcil had paid-up capital of $4 million but it has not been disclosed how much I-Cap is owed -said to be $1 million - or how much Mr Wilson has paid to buy the chain.

Through subsidiaries Amcil operated a chain of six "Shortland St"-type medical clinics. A clinic in Riccarton, Christchurch, was already in the process of being closed but the other five - in Auckland, Hamilton, Kapiti Coast and Christchurch - have been sold to Mr Wilson who is operating them in partnership with The Doctors, a 12-clinic chain. With a combined chain of 17 clinics it would be the biggest GP operator in the country, Mr Wilson said.

He has also paid for the rights to take over the name Medi-Plus, fuelling confusion about who is behind which Medi-Plus company.

Out-of-pocket shareholders who put money into Amcil last year during the $1.5 million capital raising, believing it was going to expand into Australia, questioned whether some of the same people are involved in the new Medi-Plus as the old - because they have no information to prove otherwise.

Shareholder Kevin Brown, who invested $130,000 in Amcil and described himself as "one of the little fish," complained they had not been kept informed about the state of the company before it went into liquidation - and said he wanted to know who was backing Mr Wilson.

Companies Office records show Medi-Plus Group was registered in May 2002 and its sole director and shareholder was Mr Wilson.

Mr Wilson conceded data was not up to date as he has other equity investors but he refused to reveal their identities because he said he did not have to answer to Amcil's former shareholders.

"I don't have any responsibility to do that. I don't have any desire to do that ... My reputation in the New Zealand health industry is unquestionable," he said.

Mr Wilson is a former partner with KPMG in the Bay of Plenty who went on to take key roles in the resthome industry, including general manager of Harbourside Group Holdings.

A company statement says former resthome sector executive Scott Arrol is also involved in the Medi-Plus Group.

The Amcil company structure is complex with Amcil's shareholders buying into the company through Melbourne-registered Medi Plus Accident and Medical Centre.

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