State regulators would have to approve Yale-New Haven (Conn.) Health System's acquisition of New London, Conn.-based Lawrence + Memorial Hospital by next month to let the systems avoid an additional $250,000 in regulatory fees, according to The Day.
However, under an executive order issued by Connecticut Gov. Dannel P. Malloy in February, a decision on the proposed transaction is not possible until next year. Under his order, decisions on certain CON applications will be delayed until Jan. 15, 2017.
If the order holds and state officials do not approve the potential merger by Sept. 8, the organizations risk paying more fees to re-file documents with the FTC and restart the process.
Lawrence + Memorial officials said the merger is necessary in order to keep the financially troubled hospital open.. If the merger does not go through, L+M officials said they will most likely have to look for another partner.
The governor's order only applies to transactions that could result in a health system's operating revenue accounting for more than 20 percent of hospital operating revenues in the state, based on fiscal year 2014 numbers. The executive order does not apply to out-of-state companies seeking to acquire Connecticut hospitals