The Massachusetts attorney general's office approved Boston-based Partners HealthCare System's acquisition of Cooley Dickinson Hospital in Northampton, but the systems made an agreement with regulators to negotiate separate contracts with health insurers for five years due to concerns about market dominance and potentially higher prices, according to a report by the Boston Globe.
The state's newly created Health Policy Commission, a watchdog agency charged with reviewing competition in the state's healthcare market, will decide by June 6 whether to conduct an inquiry of its own, according to the report. The commission doesn't have regulatory power to block a transaction, but law requires a transaction cannot be finalized until 30 days after the commission's final report.
The state commission and the Department of Justice are currently reviewing Partners' pending deal to acquire South Shore Hospital in Weymouth, Mass.
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The state's newly created Health Policy Commission, a watchdog agency charged with reviewing competition in the state's healthcare market, will decide by June 6 whether to conduct an inquiry of its own, according to the report. The commission doesn't have regulatory power to block a transaction, but law requires a transaction cannot be finalized until 30 days after the commission's final report.
The state commission and the Department of Justice are currently reviewing Partners' pending deal to acquire South Shore Hospital in Weymouth, Mass.
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