The battle between the Federal Trade Commission and two Chicago-area health systems began in appellate court Friday, according to the Chicago Tribune.
In 2014, Downers Grove, Ill.-based Advocate Health Care and Evanston, Ill.-based NorthShore University HealthSystem unveiled plans to come together and create a new system called Advocate NorthShore Health Partners, which would include 16 hospitals. After a 15-month review, the FTC opposed the merger in December.
Both sides presented testimony in April over whether the FTC's request for a preliminary injunction to halt the transaction should be granted. The FTC argued the merger would have anti-competitive effects. However, Advocate and NorthShore claim the merger will not raise healthcare prices for consumers or reduce health insurers' bargaining power.
In an order issued June 14, U.S. District Judge Jorge Alonso denied the FTC's request to block the proposed merger. He said the government did not provide enough evidence that the partnership would harm competition in the region. The FTC appealed the federal judge's decision.
The hearing Friday is part of the government's case appealing the lower court's decision. A decision in the appeal could come this fall, according to the Chicago Tribune.
As they begin their next legal battle, both sides have received support from different groups. In late July, 11 state attorneys general filed a friend-of-the-court brief backing the FTC's effort to block the merger. Earlier this month, the American Hospital Association filed a brief asking the appeals court to reject the FTC's proposed test for evaluating hospital mergers.
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