Courts and the Federal Trade Commission should consider more than harm to competition when evaluating healthcare mergers; they should also consider the benefit to underserved communities, Phil Goldberg and Kateland Jackson of Shook, Hardy & Bacon wrote in a Bloomberg Law op-ed Feb. 9.
President Joe Biden recently told the FTC to oppose mergers that hurt competition, according to the piece. Mr. Goldberg and Ms. Jackson argue that in some cases, a healthcare merger can be a major benefit for patients, particularly in rural, inner city and tribal communities where there are few options.
"Experience has shown that by combining forces, healthcare providers can create significant efficiencies, including affording state-of-the-art equipment and better integrating services for patients," they wrote.
Sometimes, a merger is the only option to prevent a closure, they say, citing a September 2021 study published in Jama Network Open.
"The better approach is for the FTC — and courts — to weigh the benefits of a merger and then hold the parties accountable for making sure these benefits are real and provided to patients in the local communities," they wrote.
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