On June 4, 2013, Steward Health Care System, LLC, Blackstone Medical Center, Inc., and Blackstone Rehabilitation Hospital, Inc. filed a complaint in federal district court, alleging that the Defendant, Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island, violated state and federal antitrust law, and tortuously interfered with contractual relations, by engaging in a series of anticompetitive steps designed to block Steward’s acquisition of Landmark and its entry into the Rhode Island markets for the sale of commercial health insurance and the purchase of commercial hospital services. In response, Blue Cross contended that it acted legally when it refused to accept the reimbursement rates at Landmark that Steward was offering, and otherwise operated within its rights in order to promote its business interests. The federal court, on February 19. 2014, denied the defendants’ motion to dismiss the case. The plaintiffs in California putative class action Sidibe v. Sutter cited to this court’s denial in arguing against Sutter’s motion to dismiss in that case. The Source is following developments in these two private actions.