RBC launches creditor-led CCAA for Premier Health staffing group

Premier Health of America Inc. (TSXV:PHA) and nine related companies, a Québec-based national healthcare staffing group, was placed under Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act protection on June 23, 2026, on application by Royal Bank of Canada, owed more than $28.16 million.

The group comprises public parent Premier Health of America, Premier Soin Nordik, Premier Health Nordik Ontario, Code Bleu, Placement Premier Soin, 10544485 Canada, Solutions Nursing PHA, Canadian Health Care Agency, Solutions Staffing and former real estate holding company 8961760 Canada. It recruits, places and manages healthcare professionals, primarily nurses, for federal and provincial bodies and private clients across Canada, with a focus on remote and Indigenous communities.

Premier Health became a reporting issuer in March 2020. It provides centralized management, payroll, marketing, technology and other back-office functions to its subsidiaries and owns the group’s proprietary LiPHe contract administration and scheduling platform. The group currently employs approximately 305 non-unionized employees, including approximately 194 nurses at Solutions Staffing and 23 nurses at Canadian Health Care Agency.

The debtors expanded through acquisitions, including Canadian Health Care Agency in April 2022 and Solutions Staffing in November 2023. The latter acquisition was financed through a $50 million refinancing involving RBC, BDC Capital Inc. and Desjardins Capital Private Debt L.P. Approximately $45.3 million remained outstanding to the secured lenders immediately before the filing, including the approximately $28.16 million owing to RBC and approximately $17.1 million under the BDC and Desjardins senior, mezzanine and payment-in-kind facilities.

The group’s performance deteriorated as Québec restricted the use of private healthcare staffing agencies and imposed rate caps under Bill 10. On October 1, 2025, the Autorité des marchés publics revoked the contracting authorizations of four Québec subsidiaries and placed them on the province’s register of enterprises ineligible for public contracts for five years. The group unsuccessfully sought to stay that decision and had discontinued all Québec public-sector operations by December 2, 2025.

Its western Canadian business also weakened following the expansion of GoHealth BC, a provincial staffing initiative that diverted contract volumes and labour supply from private agencies. Consolidated revenue declined to approximately $102 million in fiscal 2025 from approximately $158.2 million in fiscal 2024, while the group moved from positive EBITDA of approximately $6 million to negative EBITDA of approximately $1.5 million. It recorded a pre-tax loss of approximately $17.4 million for the year ended September 30, 2025.

As of December 31, 2025, the debtors reported assets of approximately $42.6 million and liabilities of approximately $56.4 million. The assets included approximately $14.5 million of receivables and approximately $13.7 million of intangible assets. Unsecured obligations totalled approximately $5.6 million as of May 31, 2026, including approximately $2.4 million of trade payables and approximately $2.6 million of employee-related obligations. Regular wages and source deductions were current, although approximately $500,000 of vacation pay had accrued.

RBC first agreed to forbear from enforcement in April 2025. An amended forbearance agreement entered into in September 2025 was later extended but expired on April 10, 2026, following continuing covenant, payment and reporting defaults. RBC also alleged that the debtors made approximately $892,000 of unbudgeted tax-related payments in early April.

The filing follows two unsuccessful or incomplete transaction efforts. Leede Financial Inc., retained in June 2025, contacted approximately 150 strategic and financial parties and secured approximately 17 confidentiality agreements, but received no non-binding letters of intent. FTI Capital Advisors began a second, accelerated process in May 2026, contacting 16 parties during its initial phase. Several non-binding proposals were received by May 22, and several binding offers followed by the June 17 second-phase deadline.

FTI and RBC now expect to select a successful bid shortly after the initial order and seek approval of a transaction at the comeback hearing. The process may produce a going-concern sale, a partial asset transaction or another restructuring outcome. FTI will also oversee expense reductions designed to conserve liquidity and maintain core services until a transaction can close. RBC is providing a DIP loan.

FTI is the monitor. Counsel is Davies for RBC, Osler for the monitor, Norton Rose Fulbright for BDC Capital and Desjardins, and Lavery for the companies.