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US: Supreme Court revives case against hospital merger in state vs federal debate

By  |  February 19, 2013

The Supreme Court has unanimously voted that lower courts had improperly dismissed antitrust concerns over a merger between two hospitals in Georgia. The merger, between the area’s only two hospitals, raised concerns and the Federal Trade Commission tried to block the transaction. In the court’s opinion, written by Justice Sonia Sotomayor, it was announced that antitrust exemption for actions taken by a state do not overrule that transaction from federal concerns. The two hospitals, Phoeby Putney Memorial Hospital and Palmyra Medical Center were aided by a public hospital authority, considered an agency of the state. The deal was closed for $195 million despite objections from the Federal Trade Commission. According to the court, the state of Georgia did not adequately address policy to allow such a merger.

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