SBA 7(a) Physical Therapy Clinic Feasibility Study in Illinois

Illinois rehabilitation clinics: Cook County and few brands

Physical therapy in Illinois is mostly an independent, small-ticket business that clusters in one county. SBA's 7(a) file holds 78 loans for rehabilitation and therapy clinics in FY2017 to FY2026, worth $29.3 million in gross dollars, and 2.6% of them are franchised. The median of $150,000 is 1.07x the national figure for the class, with half of all loans between $86,475 and $346,250. Illinois is 11th nationally on count, and within the state the class stands at 16 of 39 among financed industries. Cook County alone has 41 loans, with DuPage at 12, Will at 9 and Lake at 4.

Three holders and a gap year

JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association holds 11 loans, The Huntington National Bank 9 and Byline Bank 7; as always these are present holders in SBA's data. The annual series shows 12 loans in FY2017 and again in FY2022, but 0 loans in FY2020, a year with no recorded approval in this class, followed by 9 loans worth $7.6 million in FY2021. Recent years are steadier, at 7 loans each in FY2025 and FY2026.

Floors for cancellation and charge-off

Cancellation hit at least 10.9% of the Illinois clinic loans approved across FY2017 to FY2024, and 12.5% when unfunded loans are counted as lost. Illinois has 30 seasoned clinic loans (funded FY2017 to FY2021), where charge-offs reach 3.3% overall yet 0.00% inside five years. With 30 loans the cohort sits right at the threshold below which rates are withheld, so a single loan moves the figure by several points, and loans not yet repaid can still add to it.

What an Illinois clinic study has to test

A physical therapy study starts with referrals. Physicians send most patients, so the study has to show which practices will refer, the insurance plans the clinic can join, and the visit volume per therapist that a schedule can hold. Reimbursement rates vary by payer and are the main driver of revenue per visit. Therapist hiring is the other limit; the study should show how many full-time clinicians the plan needs and what each earns. A median near $150,000 points to leased space and equipment, so the lease term and buildout cost belong in the model. The payment should be covered when the first year runs below the planned visits. No coding limit is flagged for this cell.