Friday, Governor Rick Scott announced that Azalea Health has selected Gainesville for a corporate expansion, creating 10 new jobs over the next year with a capital investment of $30,000. Azalea is a leading provider in cloud-based electronic health records software, practice management software, and revenue cycle management services.

Governor Scott said, “We are excited that Azalea Health has chosen Gainesville for their expansion. Not only have we created more than 440,000 private-sector jobs since December 2010, but Florida’s unemployment rate is lower than it’s been in five years. In order to grow more opportunities for Florida families to succeed, we must invest in programs that will diversify our economy and create jobs for future generations. But, our work is not done until every Floridian has a job that wants one.”

Azalea Health is a five-year old company with 42 employees. They have offices in Georgia, but will be expanding to Florida at UF’s Innovation Square. The company chose Gainesville because of the availability of talent, a thriving economy, low cost of living, and high quality of life.

“We chose the Gainesville area because of the great availability of quality talent coming out of the universities, technical schools, and community colleges, as well as the innovative and supportive community,” said Doug Swords, Chief Financial Officer of Azalea Health. “Azalea looks forward to recruiting a dedicated team of enthusiastic individuals in order to continue the company’s track record of success.”

Azalea Health improves patient care by providing the highest level of innovative technologies, solutions and services to the healthcare community. Azalea offers continuity, flexibility and simplicity to provide the best quality products and services to their clients. Earlier this year, UF Health was ranked among the nation’s best hospital for five adult and six pediatric specialties, and is the second-largest employer in the Gainesville area, behind only the University of Florida. The North Florida Regional Medical Center is also ranked among the Top 10 employers in the area and has nationally ranked programs.

Some of the nation’s most highly regarded research centers are located around the state, making Florida’s life science industry one of the best in the country. Nearly 1,000 biotech, pharmaceutical and medical devices companies, and more than 44,000 healthcare establishments are in Florida.

President and CEO of Enterprise Florida, Gray Swoope said, “This expansion is a great addition to Florida’s growing life science sector. Our skilled workforce and strong business climate are two necessary components for the expansion of businesses like Azalea Health, and we will continue to share Florida’s business story to bring more industry leaders like Azalea Health to the state.”

This project was made possible thanks to strong partnerships at the state and local levels. Enterprise Florida, Gainesville Area Chamber of Commerce, Gainesville Council for Economic Outreach, and Department of Economic Opportunity worked with Azalea to make this expansion possible.

“Azalea Health is a natural fit in the Gainesville area because of the talent that our area develops year after year, but also to grow at the heart of Gainesville’s thriving healthcare industry,” said John Carlson, Chair of the Council for Economic Outreach. “The creation of 10 new jobs, as well as the potential for growth in our area will help bolster our efforts at the retention of our local graduates to live and work in our community.

“We are thrilled that the life sciences industry is growing in Florida and that companies like Azalea Health are taking advantage of our talented workforce and pro-growth tax policies,” said Jesse Panuccio, Executive Director of the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity. “Gainesville is a great city to grow a small business and we look forward to Azalea Health creating jobs for Florida families and investing in our state.”