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US: St. Luke’s decides to continue its court fight

By  |  April 1, 2015

Idaho’s largest hospital system wants another shot at arguing its points in a multimillion-dollar federal antitrust case that could shape the future of health-care mergers in the U.S.

St. Luke’s Health System in February lost a first-round appeal to the 9th Circuit, where a panel of three appeals-court judges upheld a ruling by U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill.

Winmill ruled in January 2014 that St. Luke’s broke federal antitrust laws by taking over Saltzer Medical Group’s private practice in Nampa. Federal, state and private parties sued St. Luke’s over that purchase, arguing that it gave St. Luke’s too much power over the area’s primary-care market. Winmill agreed, and the 9th Circuit panel decided he wasn’t wrong in his ruling.

Now, the health system wants some or all of the 9th Circuit’s judges to rehear its case.

 

Full Content: Modern Healthcare

 

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