In this first issue of Litigation and Enforcement Highlights of 2022, we bring you a digest of recent merger review activities in healthcare provider transactions and look ahead to important antitrust enforcement actions in consolidation and anticompetitive practices that are pending on the horizon.   Healthcare Merger Watch Centene/Magellan Although opposed by many antitrust experts, Centene completed its $2.2 billion acquisition of Magellan Health last week. In California, Centene and Magellan both operate as sellers of behavioral-specific healthcare financing services, pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) services, specialty pharmacy services, and Employee …

All eyes are on Hackensack Meridian Health’s proposed acquisition of Englewood Healthcare Foundation as the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments in the FTC challenge last week. As healthcare entities continue to actively pursue mergers and affiliations during —and in part driven by— the coronavirus pandemic, the outcome of this New Jersey merger may have significant implications for both federal and state antitrust enforcement across the country. In this post, The Source brings you up to speed with the latest developments leading up to the high-stakes appeal and …

In July 2021, President Biden’s executive order called on federal agencies to strengthen antitrust enforcement in the healthcare industry to promote and revitalize healthcare competition and price transparency in the U.S. In response to the call to action, the agencies, particularly the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), have mobilized and stepped up their efforts by providing additional guidance and oversight of consolidation in the healthcare market. In this issue of Litigation and Enforcement Highlights, we take a look at the FTC’s reinstatement and implementation of the prior approval rule, the latest …

California is one of the leading states in healthcare antitrust enforcement. Following the footsteps of former California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, who led the antitrust lawsuit against northern California hospital giant Sutter Health, the new attorney general Rob Bonta continues to exercise the AG’s expansive authority with aggressive enforcement actions in the California provider market. Earlier in the summer, the AG’s office settled a lawsuit filed by Cedars-Sinai Health System and Huntington Memorial Hospital, with revised competitive impact conditions on the cross-market affiliation in Southern California to address potential harms …

Hackensack Meridian Health’s proposed acquisition of Englewood Healthcare Foundation is the latest case to watch amidst increased federal antitrust scrutiny of healthcare mergers. While the FTC’s preliminary injunction against the merger was approved by the New Jersey district court early last month, the entities continue to put up a fight pending the FTC administrative trial set for October. In this post, The Source provides a recap of the latest development in the case and a preview of what’s to come.   FTC Challenge to Block Merger Hackensack Meridian Health, formed …

See case page: UFCW & Employers Benefit Trust v. Sutter Health On August 27, nearly two years after the parties reached a proposed settlement agreement, Judge Anne-Christine Massullo of the San Francisco Superior gave the final approval to the settlement of the high profile antitrust case against Sutter Health. The final settlement was stalled several times along the way, first due to the coronavirus pandemic, then the court’s rejection of the compliance monitor, and most recently disputes over attorney fees, which was the subject of the preliminary approval hearing on July …

Healthcare entities have continued to actively pursue proposed mergers and affiliations during —and in part driven by— the coronavirus pandemic. Since the settlement of the Sutter Health antitrust lawsuit, the proposed affiliation of Cedars-Sinai Health System and Huntington Memorial Hospital in California has emerged as the leading case that has captured the attention of health policy experts as to its antitrust implications. The Source also weighed in on the case with an amicus brief filed with the Los Angeles County Superior Court. In this post, we further detail the background …

Breaking: A class action lawsuit has been filed in North Carolina state court against HCA Healthcare and Mission Health, alleging anticompetitive practices in violation of the North Carolina Constitution and antitrust and consumer protection laws. The lawsuit follows HCA’s 2019 acquisition of Mission Health in North Carolina, which was approved with conditions by the North Carolina AG, although none of which were competitive impact conditions. Plaintiffs, who are North Carolina patients, claim that Tennessee-based HCA used market power garnered from the cross-market merger to demand anticompetitive terms in contracts with …

Newly available on the Source: our health policy research team compiled a user-friendly, downloadable Excel spreadsheet of all provider merger review authority for all 50 states, now on the Market Consolidation interactive key issue page. The detailed chart provides clickable citations of all statutes, regulations, and state authority for mergers, acquisitions, conversions, or changes in ownership of healthcare providers. The comprehensive spreadsheet allows side-by-side comparisons of the level of legal authority for each state to receive notice of impending transactions, review those transactions, and approve, conditionally approve, or disapprove them. …

In an encouraging boost to efforts to promote healthcare competition and price transparency, President Biden signed a sweeping executive order that targets consolidation and lack of competition in the healthcare industry, among others. As part of the Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy released on July 9th, the President targeted specific market players in the healthcare sector, including hospitals, health insurers, and prescription drug manufacturers. The Executive Order affirms the policy of the Biden Administration “to enforce the antitrust laws to combat the excessive concentration of industry, …