Reading (Pa.) Health System has terminated its plan to acquire the Surgical Institute of Reading after the Federal Trade Commission authorized an action to block the deal, according to a Reading Eagle report.
In May, Reading Health agreed to acquire SIR, a physician-owned specialty hospital in Wyomissing, Pa. SIR is comprised of 16 physician owners and has 11 independent physicians on staff.
The FTC and Pennsylvania Attorney General Linda Kelly asked a federal court for an injunction to bar the deal. Federal officials claimed the proposed deal would result in combined Reading Health-SIR market shares ranging from 49 to 71 percent for certain services.
Reading Health officials disagreed with the FTC and AG, according to the report, but decided the long-term costs of a legal dispute with the government were not justified.
"We reach this conclusion with regret because we believe the merger of these two strong, high-quality healthcare institutions clearly would have benefited the community," Reading Health CEO Clint Matthews said in the report.
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In May, Reading Health agreed to acquire SIR, a physician-owned specialty hospital in Wyomissing, Pa. SIR is comprised of 16 physician owners and has 11 independent physicians on staff.
The FTC and Pennsylvania Attorney General Linda Kelly asked a federal court for an injunction to bar the deal. Federal officials claimed the proposed deal would result in combined Reading Health-SIR market shares ranging from 49 to 71 percent for certain services.
Reading Health officials disagreed with the FTC and AG, according to the report, but decided the long-term costs of a legal dispute with the government were not justified.
"We reach this conclusion with regret because we believe the merger of these two strong, high-quality healthcare institutions clearly would have benefited the community," Reading Health CEO Clint Matthews said in the report.
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